FOREST HISTORY · Historic event
Alex McLeish appointed manager
On this day in 2012 Forest appoint Alex McLeish as manager after Sean O’Driscoll’s sudden dismissal.
Alex McLeish’s appointment arrived with tension already hanging over the City Ground.
Forest had dismissed Sean O’Driscoll little more than 24 hours earlier, despite a 4–2 Boxing Day win over Leeds United. The team were eighth in the Championship and only a point outside the play-off places, so the timing of the change surprised many supporters.
McLeish brought Premier League and international experience, and the club’s owners presented him as the man to push Forest forward. But the reaction around the appointment was uneasy from the start, partly because O’Driscoll’s departure had felt so abrupt.
The spell did not settle. McLeish lasted only 40 days and seven matches before leaving by mutual consent in February 2013. What began as an attempt to add experience instead became another short, unsettled managerial episode in a period when Forest supporters were becoming used to sudden change.
Sources
The Guardian; Sky Sports; Wikipedia with BBC Sport reference
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Forest completed a demanding festive double over Newcastle United by winning 3–0 at the City Ground only a day after beating the same opponents…
Alex McLeish’s appointment arrived with tension already hanging over the City Ground. Forest had dismissed Sean O’Driscoll little more than 24 hours earlier, despite…