Stefan Borson reveals what Nottingham Forest and Nuno's legal battle is really about

Nuno Espirito Santo’s legal battle with Nottingham Forest will be about his compensation fee after being sacked earlier this season. 

That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider he expects the matter to be resolved before an arbitration hearing takes place.

Nuno was relieved of his duties by Forest after just three Premier League games this season despite helping them secure a European place in 2024-25. 

The Portuguese boss is among three managers to have been sacked at the City Ground in the ongoing campaign, including Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche.

Forest have paid significant compensation to managers as a result of their changes, with Vitor Pereira now in charge of the club. 

What is ‘surprising’ about Nuno Espirito Santo situation

The Athletic reported on 5 March Nuno, who is now West Ham manager, is embroiled in a legal dispute with Forest relating to his sacking. 

The news outlet revealed lawyers have been hired to take on his former club, but the precise details of the disagreement remain unknown. 

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson discussed what the dispute is likely to be about.

“It will only be about what he’s paid to leave,” said Borson.

“He will have been offered a settlement agreement. I mean, the only surprising thing is that most of the settlement agreements these days have got a liquidated damages clause in that fixes what the compensation is. 

“This doesn’t seem to be one of those situations where there’s a sort of question mark over which division they’re in. Sometimes what you have is a problem where the definitions around what constitutes relegation is not clear.

“Manchester City and Joe Royle had one of those cases many years ago, but the drafting is usually pretty clear. It’s not completely apparent without downloading the papers for the case.” 

Why Nottingham Forest legal battle shouldn’t be public knowledge

Borson admitted he is surprised the press have found out about the situation because it shouldn’t be public knowledge.

“I would have thought this is a private arbitration, so I’m not sure how the press found out,” said Borson.

“I don’t think it’s a case that’s in the courts. My understanding is that these are now all dealt with by arbitration, so I’m not sure how people know about the dispute. 

“I would put good money on it that it will be settled before any arbitration hearing.”

Forest are at risk of being relegated this season as they sit fourth-bottom in the Premier League table, just one place above Nuno’s West Ham on goal difference. 

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