Nuno set for West Ham job after Potter sacked

West Ham are set to appoint former Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo as head coach after sacking Graham Potter.

Nuno is expected to be in place before Monday's Premier League match against Everton, having said he has had positive talks with the West Ham board.

Potter was dismissed on Saturday morning after only eight months in charge, with the club 19th in the table.

The Hammers took only three points from their opening five league games this season under Potter.

West Ham said they believed "a change is necessary in order to help improve the team's position in the Premier League as soon as possible".

They added: "Results and performances over the course of the second half of last season and the start of the 2025-26 season have not matched expectations."

In a statement via the League Managers Association, Potter said: "I am incredibly disappointed to be leaving West Ham, particularly without being able to achieve what we set out to achieve at the start of our journey in East London.

"I do, however, fully acknowledge that the results have just not been good enough up to now."

Potter, 50, had been preparing for Monday's game and fulfilled his media duties on Friday, saying he believed he had the board's backing after "positive talks".

After last Saturday's home defeat by Crystal Palace, BBC Sport reported that West Ham were considering managerial alternatives, and discussions with Nuno have accelerated over the past 72 hours.

Nuno, 51, was sacked after 21 months in charge at Forest - and only three games into this season.

Last term the Portuguese guided them to seventh in the table - their highest finish since 1994-95 - as they qualified for Europe for the first time in three decades.

Potter took charge of 25 West Ham matches after being appointed in January - winning six - and they finished 14th last season.

"The board would like to thank Graham and his coaching staff for their hard work during their time with the Hammers and wish them every success for the future," West Ham said.

"The process of appointing a replacement is under way. The club will be making no further comment at this time."

Former Wales captain Ashley Williams told BBC's Football Focus: "For the West Ham fans and the club, they want to see a hard-working team and a bit more bravery in possession.

"Under Potter, it was flat - there was nothing for the fans to get behind. Nuno can galvanise the club and he is the perfect person of the available managers to put in there.

"West Ham have been so easy to play against. You only have to get out of second gear to beat them.

"Nuno will organise his team and figure out what players he wants and what players he can work with."

What went wrong for Potter?

The 2-1 defeat by Palace was West Ham's fifth in six league and cup games this season.

Potter replaced Julen Lopetegui, who was sacked in January after six months in charge when West Ham were 14th in the table.

But former Chelsea and Brighton boss Potter found wins difficult to come by.

West Ham, who sold Ghana forward Mohammed Kudus to Tottenham for £55m in July, spent £126m on eight signings in the summer, including the £38m purchase of Portuguese midfielder Mateus Fernandes from Southampton.

But losses to Sunderland, Chelsea, Tottenham and Palace left them in the bottom three. They went out of the Carabao Cup in the second round with a 3-2 defeat by fellow strugglers Wolves.

That led to West Ham issuing a statement acknowledging "results and performances on the pitch over the past two seasons have not met the standards we set for ourselves".

Disgruntled fans staged a demonstration against the board before the Palace match.

Poor results led to Potter becoming a viral trend on social media, with people using AI technology to swap his face on to other celebrities, including Barbie, US President Donald Trump and the Chuckle Brothers.

Speaking on Friday, Potter said he had not been taking it too seriously.

"It made my 15-year-old son laugh a lot, so you have to accept what comes with it," he said.

"At times [that is] ridicule, but that is just the environment we are in and it is what it is."

West Ham's fortunes have declined since David Moyes' departure a year after he won the club's first trophy in 43 years in the Europa Conference League in 2023.

Potter's arrival was supposed to herald a new brand of attractive football but the downward spiral has continued into this campaign.

How did Nuno's spell at Forest finish?

Despite Forest's success during Nuno's time as manager, his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis deteriorated in his final few months at the club.

In August Nuno revealed he feared for his job, with internal tensions believed to centre around disagreements over their transfer business, which was conducted by new global head of football Edu.

Despite spending about £196m on 13 players, former Wolves and Tottenham coach Nuno criticised the activity in the summer transfer window, saying Forest had wasted a good chance.

Forest suffered a poor run of form towards the end of 2024-25, taking only eight points from their final eight matches to slide out of Champions League contention.

In May Marinakis appeared to confront Nuno on the pitch following a 2-2 draw against relegated Leicester, although Forest said there was "no confrontation" and it was "fake news" to suggest otherwise.

Forest started their season with a win over Brentford and a draw with Palace, before a 3-0 home defeat to the side he is now set to lead brought an end to his time in charge.