Nottingham Forest has made the shocking announcement that under-pressure manager Steve Cooper has signed a new contract, keeping him at the club until 2025.
Cooper had been under huge scrutiny with the club struggling on their return to the Premier League having spent £150m on 22 players over the summer.
The 42-year-old’s position was in huge doubt after Monday’s 4-0 defeat at Leicester, with Rafael Benítez emerging as the early favorite to replace Cooper if he did depart.
But after talks this week the club has decided to stick with Cooper, handing him a new deal that keeps him at the club until the end of the 2024/25 season.
It is understood the deal was broadly agreed upon at the start of the season, but there was a feeling the club would focus on the transfer window and the new campaign before agreeing to the deal. However, the decision to commit to a new contract still comes as a huge shock just days after Cooper appeared to be on the way out.
It is also understood that chief executive Dane Murphy will also be staying at the club following talks this week.
“Nottingham Forest is delighted to announce that Steve Cooper has signed a new contract with the Club.
“The Forest Head Coach has signed a new deal at The City Ground running until 2025.
“The 42-year-old took charge of The Reds last September and has since won 29 of his 54 matches at the helm.
“After finishing fourth in the Championship last season, he became the first manager since 1998 to lead The Reds into the Premier League with a 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town at Wembley.
“It is now important that our focus is solely on football. As a group, we are all concentrated and will do everything we can to help the team move up the league table and once again demonstrate the qualities that led us to the Premier League.”
In a statement, Forest said.
Forest face Aston Villa on Monday night with the club currently bottom of the table, having taken four points from their first eight games.
Source: The Telegraph
