The Forest right-back is intimately acquainted with Espirito Santo, and for all the wrong reasons.
Aurier was at Tottenham when the Portuguese manager was named as the surprise replacement for Jose Mourinho.
The 30-year-old had success with Tottenham, helping them to the Champions League final, where they were defeated by Liverpool.
Espirito Santo apparently wasn’t satisfied by Aurier, and he decided to release him in August 2021.
At the time, he was battling for the right-back job with Kieran Trippier and Matt Doherty, and Espirito Santo opted to let him go.
Aurier will likely be left wondering if lightning will strike again, this time at Forest.
Espirito Santo has released Aurier from Tottenham Hotspur.
Aurier’s heart must have sunk when Fabrizio Romano informed him that the 49-year-old was heading to England.
The right-sided defender has started 10 games this season but has missed the previous three due to a calf strain.
Forest do have options at right-back, with Aurier battling for the position with Ola Aina, Gonzalo Montiel, and Neco Williams.
After joining on a free transfer from Villarreal last season, the player was in good form, making 28 games and captaining the team once.
Aurier recovered after being freed by Espirito Santo, and he now hopes to persuade the boss of his worth.
Aurier will be hoping to avoid a repeat performance against Forest.
Espirito Santo is likely to give each player a fresh start. Despite failing to feature under Cooper recently, Joe Worrall and Scott McKenna were sighted in Forest training yesterday.
Aurier will now hope for a similar opportunity to impress Espirito Santo once he is fit enough to play for Forest.
Aurier’s stats at Forest haven’t been poor this season, and as an experienced player, he’ll back himself.
According to Who Scored, he has won 20 tackles in 12 appearances but has been dribbled past six times.
This season, Aurier has also made nine interceptions and won 30 aerial challenges.
It won’t inspire confidence in Aurier to be handled by Espirto Santo at Forest after he’s previously let him go.
The task for Aurier is to demonstrate to the head coach that he is willing to battle for Forest.
Still, with Aurier’s contract situation in jeopardy, it may be too little, too late in terms of Forest.
The defender’s contract expires next summer, and Espirito Santo will now make a second decision on his future.
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