MusaWest Ham’s season has already taken a dramatic turn with the dismissal of Graham Potter after a disastrous start left the Hammers in trouble.
His replacement, Nuno Espirito Santo, arrives in East London with a reputation for reviving struggling sides, having taken Wolves to back-to-back seventh-place finishes and later guiding Nottingham Forest into Europe.
Despite his eventual fallout at the City Ground, many West Ham supporters are optimistic that Nuno can deliver a similar turnaround at the London Stadium.
But to do so, fresh faces in the squad appear inevitable — and one player who could be top of the wishlist is someone he knows well from his time at Forest.
Nuno Eyes Reunion with Sangaré
According to Claret & Hugh, Nuno’s first signing at West Ham could be his former Nottingham Forest midfielder Ibrahim Sangaré.
The Ivorian international joined Forest in 2023, shortly before Nuno took charge, but injuries limited his impact early on. It wasn’t until the 2025/26 campaign that he began to feature regularly, starting Forest’s opening three league matches under the Portuguese coach before Nuno was dismissed.
Even with his inconsistent availability, Nuno made clear how highly he rated the midfielder, previously describing Sangaré as an “important” part of his squad.
Now, under Ange Postecoglou, Sangaré has slipped down the pecking order, sparking speculation about a January departure.
A well-placed transfer insider told Claret & Hugh: “Nuno did not want to play Douglas Luiz at Forest, which was part of the problem. Part of the disagreement with [owner Evangelos] Marinakis was that Nuno did not want Sangaré to be sold. So yeah, he could look to bring him to West Ham.”
West Ham came close to signing the 27-year-old in the summer on loan but negotiations broke down over the structure of an obligation-to-buy clause. With his role now reduced at Forest, the Hammers may revisit the deal in January — and this time, with Nuno in charge, a move could finally go through.
Musa
Kwaghterna Garshagu
