An “amazing” manager with a £10m+ release clause was Nottingham Forest’s top target to replace Ange Postecoglou prior to a deal for Sean Dyche being agreed, it has been revealed.

Forest slammed for "ridiculous" Ange decision as Dyche joins

After replacing Nuno back in September, Ange lasted just 39 days as Forest manager, with Alan Shearer and Micah Richards both agreeing it was “ridiculous” not to give the Australian more time, despite making a very poor start to life at the City Ground.

The 3-0 defeat against Chelsea was the final straw for Evangelos Marinakis, with the owner sacking the 60-year-old just 18 minutes after full-time, having been seen leaving his seat in the second-half and not returning.

In truth, the scoreline didn’t reflect the balance of the game, with the Tricky Trees recording an xG of 2.35, compared to 1.67 from the visitors, but they were unable to take their chances, and goalkeeper Matz Sels struggled at the opposite end of the pitch.

With the Ange era coming to an end before it really started, Marinakis has wasted no time bringing in a replacement, as Dyche was already in the building by Tuesday morning.

However, according to a report from Football Insider, Nottingham Forest originally identified Fulham manager Marco Silva as the top target for the role.

Forest would have had to fork out over £10m to lure Silva to the City Ground, which may have been the main stumbling block, while Dyche was available without any compensation being required.

"Amazing" Silva could've been ideal Ange replacement

Having been at Fulham since July 2021, the 48-year-old is currently the third-longest serving Premier League manager, and it would be fair to say he’s done a great job, stabilising the Cottagers as a Premier League club after winning the Championship title in 2021-22.

The Portuguese manager, who prefers to implement a 4-2-3-1 system, has also been praised by former player Tosin Adarabioyo, who described him as “amazing” a little under a year ago.

As such, Silva could’ve been an ideal successor to Postecoglou, but there are signs that Dyche could be the right man for the job, not least due to his experience in relegation battles, leading Everton to safety in dramatic fashion on the final day of the 2022-23 campaign.