The City Ground, Nottingham, Britain - September 3, 2022, Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper reacts.
Middlesbrough would be keen on Steve Cooper if he was sacked by Nottingham Forest, Scott Wilson of The Northern Echo says.
The lowdown
Middlesbrough are working to appoint a successor to Chris Wilder after they terminated his contract on Monday.
Rob Edwards, recently relieved of his duties by Watford, is thought to be leading the race, though Bournemouth’s interim boss Gary O’Neil is still in the running (via Wilson).
Cooper finds himself on the ‘brink’ of losing his job at Forest following a 4-0 defeat at the hands of local rivals Leicester City on Monday, according to The Telegraph’s John Percy.
The latest
Wilson reckons that, if Cooper was on the market, he would ‘definitely’ be on Middlesbrough’s radar.
And while his sacking may come soon, the Teesside club want a swift appointment.
“The Steve Cooper situation at Forest is an interesting one. Suspect if he was available now, #Boro would definitely be interested. He might be soon – but they don’t want this to drag on and on…”
The verdict
Cooper has already shown he could be exactly what Middlesbrough need.
Forest appointed the Welshman at around this point last year (21 September to be precise), when they were bottom of the second tier.
He then sparked a historic turnaround, leading them to a fourth-place finish and promotion via the play-offs.
Middlesbrough find themselves in a similar position, down in 22nd in the table with just two wins and ten points from 11 games.
If he’s dismissed before Forest’s next game against Aston Villa, then perhaps that will lead to a rethink.
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