Vitor Pereira speaks in his first sit down interview as new Nottingham Forest head coach

Vitor Pereira speaks in his first sit down interview as new Nottingham Forest head coach, replacing Sean Dyche.

He has a tough task on his hands his new side sit 17th in the Premier League with 27 points from 26 games played, 3 points above the drop zone.

Vitor spoke to the club’s media this week, offering insight into the team’s new direction while also discussing his team identity, the challenges ahead, and the importance of player confidence and a strong team spirit.

CLUB STATEMENT:

Nottingham Forest is delighted to confirm that Vítor Pereira has been appointed as Head Coach on an 18-month deal.

Pereira began his managerial career in his homeland, Portugal, in 2002. After gaining extensive experience across the country, he took over Porto in 2011, where a hugely successful two-year spell saw him lead the club to back-to-back league titles.

Having spent time at Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, Periera then moved to Olympiacos in January 2015 and went on to win the double with the Piraeus side.

Adding to his wealth of experience at the top level around the world, Pereira has also managed Fenerbahçe in Turkey and Chinese Super League Club Shanghai SIPG, guiding the latter to their first ever league title in his debut campaign, before then winning the Chinese Super Cup. He has also had spells in charge of Brazilian clubs Corinthians and Flamengo.

Most recently, he was Head Coach of Premier League club Wolves. Taking over with club in the relegation zone, Pereira led them to a six-game winning run which helped guide them to safety during the 2024/25 season. It was the longest winning run of any team in the top-flight last season, in a campaign which also saw Wolves score a club record number of goals in the Premier League.

The 57-year-old now heads to Trentside on a deal that runs until the summer of 2027.

He will be joined by coaching staff Filipe Jorge Monteiro Almeida (Assistant Coach), Luis Miguel Moreira Da Silva (Assistant Coach), Bruno Filipe Araujo De Moura (Head of Physical Performance and Opposition Analysis), and Pedro Simao Capela Silva Lopes (Opposition Analyst).

Interviewer: “Vitor, welcome to Nottingham Forest. How do you feel to be here?”

Vitor: “I’m very proud. It’s an honour for me to make part of this family. A good team, good feelings. Now it’s time to work.”

Interviewer: “What have been your first impressions when you’ve come into both the City Ground and the training ground where we’re talking now?”

Vitor: “We have very good conditions to work. The players, we have talents. We have good players, very good players. And now it’s time to start to build the identity that I want.

“It’s important that for a manager, it’s important that the players and all the staff, it’s important that they bought the idea and the person.

“Also the person, because you must believe in the idea, in the game, in the game that you are proposing. And it’s important to accept the person because we are human beings and mistakes can happen.

“But it’s important to recognise the values, it’s important to accept and to believe in the leader. This is the leadership that I believe.”

Interviewer: “When you talk about everybody being human, human beings, this has obviously been a difficult season for Nottingham Forest. It’s been a difficult season, I’m sure, for the players because you are the fourth head coach, which is very unusual, I know. Does that make a difference to you?”

Vitor: “It’s difficult. I understand the point of view of the players. It’s difficult to change every time the manager, because each manager has a leadership, each manager has an idea of football.

“But important is to believe in the work that we are doing. We start today, we start today, we start to expand ideas.

“It’s important to put the players comfortable in the roles. It’s important to win the confidence of them, to give them confidence to play and to be themselves.

“And the respect for me to lead a team, they need to recognise your competence, they need to recognise your hard work to help them.

“And creating through spirit, because it’s important for me. A smile can do magic, because this is the spirit that I want to create, because we cannot come to the training and not enjoy the training.

“We must enjoy the training, enjoy to be here and to create the spirit of a family, to help each other, to create the environment to feel happy, to feel proud of our work.”

Interviewer: “And you mentioned the word Vitor identity a short time ago. What is the trademark of a Vitor Pereira team when the fans are looking at it on the pitch?”

Vitor: “I tell you, I’m very honest, if we play a game without quality in the end of the training, in the end of the match, I will not feel proud of my work. I want to see the spirit of the team, I want to see everybody fighting and competing without fear, without facing the opponents, without fear.

“And quality, and quality in the understanding of the game. They need to understand the collective idea and to express themselves in a quality idea. We have intentions to play in that way.

“And in that way, this is the identity that I wanted to create, their freedom to express themselves, to be happy, to enjoy. And for me, this is the way.”

Interviewer: “And as I mentioned earlier, they’ve had a tough season, whether it be with the challenge of European football, whatever it may be, the head coach turnaround, if you like.

“But when you look down the squad, Vitor, that you’ve inherited here, you mentioned the word quality, and it looks like it’s there.”

Interviewer: “The quality, of course, the quality is there. For sure, the quality is there.

“It was the first training with me, but I enjoy it. It’s freezing, it’s raining, but they have quality. They have quality.

“Sometimes we need to get our confidence to express ourselves without being afraid to make mistakes. Because we must accept the mistake and correct the mistake and try again and try again. And they have the confidence to try again.

“And this is a moment that we need to believe in ourselves as a team. And working, working, and working is not about speech, it’s not about…

“Because I believe that the first speech is important, and it’s important to give confidence to them every day.

“But the most important thing is the work. The work is to improve, to come here with an open mind, to receive… I cannot change a lot, because it’s impossible. Playing every three days is impossible. It means that they need to be intelligent, to understand. And I believe that we can create something strong together.”

Interviewer: “You mentioned as well not having fear, and I guess the situation where Forest are in the Premier League, you could have that, couldn’t you? You could have players that are a little bit scared to express themselves, and scared to make mistakes because of the situation in the Premier League. So is that a difficult balancing act to get through?”

Vitor: “My challenge for them is to play in their best version, without thinking in the… Of course, the points are very important for us, but looking forward, moving forward, looking for the next opponent that we can reach.

“And this is the idea, not to think about what can happen, because we don’t know the future. We can only work in the present.

“They are hard workers, and they proved today to me that they want to play good football, they want to win, they want to play. They have quality, and I believe, I really believe, that together we can get the points and the quality that the teams showed in the past, and I think they can show in the future. ”

Interviewer: “You obviously went into Wolves last season. You had a bit longer with Wolves, but obviously got a good degree of success in that first season, keeping Wolves up and then going on that terrific run, didn’t you? Six wins in a row as you got Wolves to safety.

“How much of that was about spirit, would you say, with Wolves, and a kind of togetherness? Because I hear a lot of good things about your relationship with the fans there, for instance.”

Vitor: “Because I don’t believe that you succeed without teamwork. I believe that the team is not only the players.

“They are not only the players because the supporters are our team. We make the staff, everybody in the club, and if we work together as a team, we can reach our targets for sure.

Interviewer: “First up for you is a trip to Fenerbahce, which is a team, of course, a club that you know well. The irony of the fixture list.

“But first of all, how much of a challenge is that for you in a first game, to go away in a Europa League tie in your first game as head coach?”

Vitor: “You know, I have been there two times in my career. I have a very, very good relationship with the supporters.

“For me, it’s an honour to start in Kadıköy Stadium because I have very good feelings and an image in my mind.

“It’s something special, of course, but now it’s time to organise the team. It’s time to study. They are doing a good season. Studying is a strong team. They are a strong team.

“We cannot think that they are not. They are very good players. They are a strong team. But I believe in my squad, my players, my boys. I believe that with our supporters we can do it.”

Interviewer: “It is, of course, a first leg of a two-legged tie, which again, I suppose, for the first job as a new head coach, you may have to approach that maybe differently to any other game, for instance. To a second leg, to a Premier League game, because it’s a first leg. Is that right?”

Vitor: “You know, with my personality, it’s difficult. I believe that a team, a manager can inspire a team and the team can inspire the manager.

“I’m the kind of person that I believe we can play against every team, looking for the three points, looking for the win.

“Because I don’t believe that if we go there thinking about drawing and deciding the game at home, this is not a good way to face Fenerbahce away. Because I know the environment. I know the fans. And we need to go there without fears. We need to go there to face them eye on eye and to prove ourselves every time.

“Because football is about courage. This is what I appreciate in the persons, in my players. The courage to be themselves, to face the opponents with our tools, with our identity, with our way to look for football. The way that we start today to do it.”

Interviewer: “And tell the supporters who are making the trip, I think there’s 1,200-ish Forest supporters who are going to Istanbul, give them an idea, Vitor, of the kind of atmosphere they’re going to be going into.”

Vitor: “The Turkish people, they love football. They love football and Fenerbahce is a special club in Turkey.

“But I believe that our supporters, they will feel very comfortable. They will like the environment.

“Because the environment with good energy is what we need, what the players, what I need. Playing with an empty stadium is not missing the energy. But we’ll play in a full stadium, for sure.

“And we’ll listen to our supporters, for sure. Because we are focused on our supporters. We have our ears listening to their support. And together we can make it. Of course, it’s a short time, a very short time.

“But I don’t want to speak about the two days to prepare the match. I prefer to think about positive things.”

Interviewer: “Yeah, I was going to say, that is a challenge.”

Vitor: “It’s a challenge. It is a good challenge. It’s a very good challenge.”

Interviewer: “And I wonder as well, Vitor, about where the priority is. Have you been told that from when you’ve been appointed? Has the owner given you a kind of… Your priority is to keep Forest in the Premier League? Or where did the Premier League and the Europa League sit with you?”

Vitor: “I think both things. If you ask the players, the most important thing is to be confident. That we can win the next game and after.

“Of course, that’s why if you play each three games, you must be, everyone, was my conversation with the players, everyone must be ready to help the team. Everyone must be in conditions to understand what we are demanding. Tactically, with the true spirit to help.

“Even if I come from the bench, I must go there with the true spirit to help. And be ready because we cannot play every time with the same first XI, because it’s impossible to play with the intensity and energy if we play every time, each three days with the same players.

Interviewer: “”Because that schedule that you’ve got coming up, with Fenerbahce, Liverpool, Fenerbahce, Brighton, Manchester City, three midweek games, it’s relentless, isn’t it?”

Vitor: “Yes. But I have the challenge because I’m here. When I was home, I was very comfortable, but I was missing the adrenaline, I was missing the football, the grass, you understand? That’s why it’s important, every day. Wake up in the morning with happiness because we do what we love to do and it’s a privilege for us.”

Interviewer: “Just finally, Vitor, as you embark as Forest Head Coach and you begin this new role for you, I wonder if you’ve got a message for the club’s supporters?”

Vitor: “Together we can do it. Together we can do it. I believe that if we create the good energy between the team and the supporters, and the supporters and the team and the club, we are close to succeeding.

“Because it’s teamwork. Teamwork is like we are a family, and you know a family. For sure, what will be in life, even for a family, we have moments to suffer together, but together we can create the true spirit to win and to go for the targets that we are looking for.”

Here’s how fans reacted after Vitor Pereira speaks in his first sit down interview as new Nottingham Forest head coach…

@phil_from_NG: Forgive us for not getting too emotionally involved with this one. Even Forest fans learn in the end.

@Mutleygold: What a brilliant positive interview – the mere fact Vitor recognises that our squad is quality, togetherness counts, our fans are important & the best part is that, he believes in our players to succeed – once again, welcome Vitor welcome ⚽ 🤍 ❤️ 🌳 ⚽ x

@nipperstorer89: Just watched new gaffers interview. I love the answer to Fenerbache away. “If you go there hoping for a draw your asking for trouble and hoping we win it at home I believe u play every game to win” Refreshing let them shackles off n let them express themselves. #NFFC

@Brandalf_:
People will say “words are worthless”.
But I can tell you right now, they’re not.
Dyche talked about the badge, the history, Ange about himself, Nuno was the last manager to talk of the team as family, a unit, with the fans.
Not saying he’ll set the world alite but… #NFFC

@BrodieJohn: Why the negativity from the fanbase? He kept wolves up last season winning 6 consecutively. Lost their best players. Makes an instant impact at all clubs, winning at least 5 games. If he does that, it’s Premier League next season. Let’s get behind him. COYR 🔴⚪️🌳#NFFC

@rentfreejt: Seems very relaxed and realistic 🤞 #NFFC

@hannahforest: I watched Vitor’s interview. He seems like a nice man, but I get a feeling he is not a man to be messed with, a bit like Nuno. I hope he is a good man-manager. #nffc

@jtweets1865: I’m getting good vibes. Quietly confident. May reassess when we’re 4-0 down on Thursday.

@JtNottm: Using words like together & family. May be PR but I’m on board. We are all one big quite dysfunctional family 😂 We do need to stick together & get us out of this mess. Onwards, Reds!! 💪 #NFFC 🌳❤️