The former Arsenal midfielder has not attended a Forest game since February, and his contract is believed to have been terminated. Forest do not intend to appoint a direct replacement, with chief football officer George Syrianos absorbing his responsibilities instead.
Edu's position had come under scrutiny since a falling-out with then-head coach Nuno Espírito Santo, who was sacked last September after suggesting his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis had changed — the first of four managerial changes at the City Ground during a chaotic campaign that started with Champions League ambitions and ended in a relegation battle.
Appointed in July 2025, Edu's remit had extended beyond Forest to Marinakis's other clubs, Greek side Olympiacos and Portuguese outfit Rio Ave, and his early messaging had spoken of building "a global football model that is competitive, sustainable" across the three.
He joined Nottingham Forest after six years at Arsenal, where he became the club's first sporting director in 2022 having previously won two Premier League titles and two FA Cups during his playing career at the Emirates.
It was Edu who appointed Mikel Arteta as Arsenal head coach, a decision that delivered the club's first Premier League title in 22 years last season, shortly before Edu's own departure to Forest. On arriving at the City Ground, he had described the move as a project that "connects deeply with my values around innovation and long-term planning," pointing to Marinakis's ambition of building a competitive, multi-club footballing operation across England, Greece and Portugal.
His exit is the latest change to Forest's senior leadership. It follows the appointment of former Olympiacos vice-president Theodore Giannikos as chief executive last week, replacing Lina Souloukou, who stepped down at the end of last season, and comes almost a year after director of football operations Ross Wilson left to join Newcastle United.
Syrianos, who already held a broad remit at the City Ground, is now set to take on an even greater share of Forest's footballing decision-making as Marinakis continues to reshape the club's hierarchy following a season that also saw the club qualify for, and then compete in, their first European campaign since 1995/96.