Gary Lineker reveals X-rated message Nottingham Forest players should have delivered to Evangelos Marinakis after Sean Dyche sacking

Forest opened the 2025-26 campaign with Nuno Espirito Santo at the helm, having seen him guide them to a seventh-place finish and European qualification last season. He was relieved of his duties on September 9.

Reins were immediately passed to ex-Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou, but unwanted history was made by the Australian as he lasted just eight winless games across 39 days at the helm. Dyche answered another SOS call from Trentside.

He was considered to be a safe option to steer Forest away from relegation danger, but picked up only 10 wins across his 25-game tenure and became the latest to be axed as boos rained down from the stands following a 0-0 draw with rock-bottom Wolves.

It is claimed that enigmatic Reds owner Marinakis met with senior players before taking the decision to part with Dyche - with an official announcement being delivered at just after midnight on February 12. Questions are unsurprisingly being asked of goings on behind the scenes in Nottingham.

Premier League legend Alan Shearer has told The Rest Is Football podcast: “There are reports, and it looks as if they're pretty solid, that he gets a players' committee in and speaks to the players and finds out what they feel, and by all accounts that's what he did after the game.” 

Ex-England international and Match of the Day presenter Lineker chimed in with: “After the game he brings in the players, probably a couple of them who might not be in the starting line-up and you know what footballers are like: if you're in the team, you're generally happy with the manager; if you're not, you're not. In the big scheme of things players will also look for an excuse, they might blame the manager.”

Shearer added on responsibility for manager failings ultimately resting with Marinakis, as he is the man that green lights appointments: “He has to take his responsibility for his recruitment of managers, I mean come on! If you're looking at Ange and looking at Nuno and looking at Sean Dyche and now you're looking for your fourth manager in a season. Sometimes you have to say to yourself: 'Am I doing my job right?' And clearly he's not. So he has to take his share of the blame.”

Lineker said of Forest lacking stability and continuity in their approach, with those players that get an audience with the owner being urged to speak their mind: “Also the way he's flip-flopped from styles.

“Obviously Nuno plays in a counter-attacking way, Ange plays very much on the front foot; then he goes back to a style with Sean Dyche - the players will be going 'What? Who's coming next?!' Vitor Pereira played quite a high press at times for Wolves, so I mean, are they going to change again? 

“And then you're going to blame the players - I think if the players had the balls in a committee meeting and said to him 'hang on a minute mate, you need to decide what f*cking style of football you actually want us to play' rather than changing it and flip-flopping 14 times - I dunno, I exaggerate.”

Forest are reportedly close to bringing in ex-Wolves boss Pereira as their new head coach, with the Portuguese set to be charged with the task of steering a course to Premier League safety and overseeing the remainder of a Europa League campaign.

He has worked with Marinakis before, at Greek giants Olympiacos, so knows what he is getting himself into. It has also been claimed that “characters” such as Marinakis are important in modern football, with the billionaire shipping magnate a man that expects everyone at his football clubs to share his passion and relentless pursuit of perfection.