Nottingham Forest have a lot to thank Steve Cooper for, and now, one of his controversial decisions from the 2023/24 campaign looks to have come to fruition.

Cooper was the man who ended 23 years outside of the Premier League by helping the team to promotion during the 2021/22 campaign.

Cooper was the man who signed Morgan Gibbs-White on Trentside, and that decision looks like a brilliant one, with the number 10 one of the very best players in the Premier League in 2026.

In 2023, Cooper was handed a number of players, with many of them not taking his fancy as signings. He was heavily criticised for not picking certain players, and now one of his calls looks completely justified.

Where would you rank Steve Cooper on the list of Nottingham Forest managers since Brian Clough?!

If he's not the best, we'd love to know who is…

Steve Cooper justified over Andrey Santos

Santos was an eye-catching loan signing from Chelsea during the 2023/24 campaign, with the Brazilian joining from Chelsea on loan for the season.

However, he ended up being recalled in January of that season, with Cooper preferring Ryan Yates and Chiekhou Kouyate over the Chelsea player – much to the bemusement of the fan base.

After failing to break into the first team with Chelsea, Santos raised eyebrows again by making a £48 million switch to Manchester United in the summer, and the move has already become a bit of a nightmare.

The man who played just twice for Forest hasn’t settled at Old Trafford at all. He looks nothing like the potential future superstar that many anticipated he’d become in the early stages of his career, and perhaps the ridicule of Cooper not picking him at Forest will have to stop.

Santos’ form with his new club has been abysmal. Last night, the Red Devils were embarrassed 4-1 against Como, with Santos scoring a 3/10 and earning this assessment from the Manchester Evening News: “Booked after being skinned by Paz, when he dived in with no chance of winning the ball. Had already committed one late tackle and little choice but to take him off at the break.”

Cooper must be feeling quite pleased with himself three years on from his decision to alienate the Brazilian at Forest. He went with tried-and-tested Premier League options and even around better players at Chelsea and now United, he’s struggled to impose himself on matches.

What the future holds for Santos remains to be seen. On current form, however, he’s doing little to suggest that he’s any further down the line from his ill-fated City Ground spell playing for Forest.