Next Forest Manager: Five names from the head of the betting

Nottingham Forest are looking for a new manager to rejuvenate their season following a stuttering start under Chris Hughton, whose tally of one point from seven games resulted in the sack on Thursday morning.

Below we have taken a look at the top five names which lead the way in the betting to fill the vacancy at the City Ground.

Steve Cooper

The odds-on favourite at the time of writing.

Reaction has been mixed to the potential appointment of Steve Cooper, who The Telegraph report has emerged as a serious contender for the job and could even be appointed before the weekend if talks go smoothly.

On one hand, Cooper fits the bill as a young, modern manager who has a background of working with and developing young players; Cooper memorably led England U17s to World Cup glory.

But there are concerns over his style of play, which was often far from riveting at Swansea, although he’d argue that it’s a results business and he took the Swans to consecutive top-six finishes.

Chris Wilder

Surely the top pick with the majority of fans.

Chris Wilder has the resume, the pedigree, and is itching to get back on the touchline.

If there’s anyone who can shake things up, restore pride and passion, and propel Forest back up the table it’s the former Blades boss who can be backed about 9/4 in the betting.

The question is: would he take the job if approached?

John Terry

This one has been doing the rounds for some time now; it even got to the point where John Terry released a statement via his Instagram story to deny rumours that he was going to replace Hughton.

Hughton’s since been jettisoned from his post, so could JT’s head be turned back to the Midlands?

A leader and inspiration as a player, we’ve not got anything to go on manager wise as Terry has yet to venture out solo, although he impressed in his role as assistant to Dean Smith at Aston Villa and played under some of the very best bosses in the business.

However, it would be a big risk to opt for a rookie boss, with Forest still searching for their first win of the season.

Alex Neil

Alex Neil was spotted in the stands during what turned out to be Hughton's last stand on Wednesday night.

Neil has plenty of Championship experience from spells at Norwich and Preston.

The Scot led the Canaries up into the Premier League at the first time of asking, but couldn't repeat the promotion feat with Preston who were unable to make the play-offs during his four-year tenure, although it's worth noting that his best players were regularly plucked from his grasp.

Out-of-work since March, could Neil now be eyeing up a return to the second-tier?

Achim Beierlorzer

Forest have appointed a number of European managers in recent years, including the French duo of Philippe Montanier and Sabri Lamouchi, along with Spaniard Aitor Karanka.

Could they now look across the continent once again, this time over to Germany?

Achim Beierlorzer makes for an intriguing option at 16/1. The 53-year-old, who is the brother of former Bayern defender Bertram, was the predecessor to Ralf Rangnick at RB Leipzig, where he stayed on as an assistant before managing Jahn Regensburg, 1. FC Köln, and most recently Jurgen Klopp’s old side Mainz 05.

In the summer he returned to RB Leipzig as an assistant to Jesse Marsch.