For some time, the Reds had been searching for a coach with expertise in set pieces, as Evangelos Marinakis was dissatisfied that Forest didn’t have one.
At Tottenham, Vio, 70, works alongside Antonio Conte, the Italian head coach, as a valued deputy.
Recently, the Reds were able to select a set-piece coach. Having led teams in the England youth setup and Stockport before, Simon Rusk joined Forest.
Following Cooper’s denial, Forest decided not to appoint Vio.
The Athletic claims that Forest and Vio had reached an agreement on everything, and the coach was prepared to return to England. Cooper, however, opposed the agreement, saying he wasn’t very excited about the prospect of him joining.
Cooper wanted his own man at Forest instead. In light of this, they went ahead and hired Rusk, making him the team’s first-ever specialized set-piece coach.
This season, Forest has performed horribly from set pieces. They have only managed one goal and haven’t scored from this position since Willy Boly’s goal against Manchester United in August.
On the other hand, nothing has improved. This season, Forest has given up 11 goals from set-pieces, which is an appalling statistic in my opinion.
Cooper desired a major part for his own men.
This just doesn’t sit quite right for some reason. It’s strange that Forest allowed Cooper to name a coach when his employment was obviously in jeopardy and weren’t emphatic on Vio, especially considering Rusk has only been there for a little over a week.
It’s possible that this is just another peculiar instance highlighting Forest’s occasionally erratic behavior behind the scenes, and it is quite odd.
The presence of Nuno Espirito Santo raises certain concerns about the backroom staff. It’s unclear who will be involved at this point, and it’s unclear if Rusk will go quickly.
