Steve Cooper’s departure from Nottingham Forest has left even the best Championship managers nervously peering over their shoulder.
The 44-year-old has an impeccable record in the second tier. A beaten play-off finalist with unfancied Swansea in 2021, the former England Under-17 boss then engineered a remarkable promotion to the Premier League at Forest, who were rock-bottom of the Championship when he took charge eight months earlier.

All told, he has managed 155 games in the Championship and won 46 per cent of them, all playing an aggressive counter-attacking style that remained hugely ...