Nuno Espirito Santo looks set to take charge of Nottingham Forest for their Premier League clash with Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Late last week, the Portuguese fuelled speculation about the precariousness of his position with the phrase: “There is no smoke without fire.”
The manager, who extended his contract in June after leading the team into European competition for the first time since 1995, acknowledged a deterioration in relations with the club's owner Evangelos Marinakis, partly due to the appointment of Edu Gaspar as global director of football.
His outspoken comments at a press conference ahead of the Palace clash, a week after he publicly criticised the club's transfer policy in the summer, reportedly left club officials shaken.
However, Nuno is expected to remain in charge for Sunday's clash at Selhurst Park unless there are any sudden changes in preparation.
The team held their scheduled training session on Saturday morning and are set to travel to London in the afternoon.
The match was given added urgency by Forest's participation in the Europa League in place of Palace, who were disqualified for breaching multi-club ownership rules.
Palace chairman Steve Parish openly blamed Forest for the outcome after they approached UEFA to express their concerns – the London club lost their appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
The meeting is scheduled for Sunday because Palace played a Conference League qualifier on Thursday where Forest were originally due to play.
This fact, along with Nuno's public statement in which he questioned his future, is expected to influence the situation.
“Especially in view of the information being spread that Forest is to blame for the situation, which is not true,” he continued.
“We did a good job last season and qualified for European competition. We were ready for a little test. But what happened?
“I don't think we're to blame for anything, but with all due respect, I expect a difficult atmosphere at the game on Sunday.”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
