The victory over Liverpool by Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Saturday was a significant upset.
The Tricky Trees defeated a Premier League Redwood to earn their second victory of the year and first in ten games.
The 1-0 victory for Steve Cooper’s team was secured by Taiwo Awoniyi, a product of the Liverpool academy, as the home crowd went wild all game long.
After eking out consecutive 1-0 victories at home against Manchester City and West Ham at Anfield, Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool suffered this shocking defeat, showing that they are still having trouble early in the season.
Forest now has nine points for the year after the victory. Liverpool is still on 16 after losing three of their first 11 games.
What Liverpool vs. Nottingham Forest taught us
Salah is having trouble in the center of the field because Liverpool’s 4-4-2 has him starting up top once more, and it’s not working. The Egyptian King is missing the right flank. He can’t find gaps like he can when he cuts in from the right, and Forest’s center-backs simply tagged him the entire time. He seized opportunities and just avoided eye contact, as he had been doing in previous weeks. If Liverpool had other forward alternatives on the bench when he went down in the first half, he might have recovered.
Forest has discovered a successful formula: It wasn’t attractive, but it served its purpose. Really big. Forest has been playing with more physicality lately, and their draw against Brighton gave them the assurance that they could sit back, dig deep, and harm opponents on the break. It was always going to take time for Cooper to discover a winning formula with a whole new squad because Ryan Yates in the middle of the field has summed up how difficult they have become to beat. The victory will inspire great confidence in Forest.
Van Dijk blows major opportunities, putting Liverpool out of the title race: While he was completely unmarked late in the game but Henderson saved his header that went directly down the middle of the goal, he attempted to set up Firmino in the first half rather than nodding home from six yards out. Even though Virgil van Dijk is a formidable defender, he wasted Liverpool’s best two opportunities. Liverpool has paid a heavy price this season for losing focus when it mattered most, and even if their performance levels have only decreased by roughly 10%, it makes a significant difference in what Klopp requires. According to him, they were out of the title race a few weeks ago, but after a few tenacious victories, it appeared they would be back. However, their loss to Forest shows they won’t be title challengers this year.
Tactical stance
Due to the injuries to Jota and Nunez, Liverpool once again used a 4-4-2 formation with Salah and Firmino up top. They were surrounded at midfield and never appeared to be at ease. The problem with this formation has been the insufficient early and frequent ball distribution to Salah and other forwards. Kouyate and Yates were positioned in front of Forest’s defense, and they quickly sprang into challenges, repeatedly won the ball back, and helped set the stage for a decisive victory.
Actors in the piece
Dean Henderson: Made excellent saves late in the game to prevent Liverpool from scoring, particularly on Virgil van Dijk’s header.
Cheikhou Kouyate, a dominant midfielder for the Senegalese team, cut off Salah and Firmino’s supply line. With several careless challenges in the early half, he pushed his luck, but his great energy laid the stage for this victory.
Next, what?
On Sunday, October 30, Forest will visit Arsenal, while on Saturday, October 29, Liverpool will host Leeds.
Major plotlines
Forest is supporting Steve Cooper after awarding him a new contract, but there are many doubts about their significant and pricey summer spending spree after they fired their recruitment team. This team still lacks unity, yet they are just one loss away from finishing outside the bottom three. Brennan Johnson, Taiwo Awoniyi, and Emmanuel Dennis must launch an offensive effort right away. With two straight victories, Liverpool is returning to its spirited and aggressive best, and Klopp is pleased with their level of fervor. Despite being severely injured, they still have a long way to go before they can enter the title race, but they are making progress.
Players to watch that are in good form
Forest’s goalkeeper Dean Henderson is doing a good job, while Alisson of Liverpool stopped Jarrod Bowen’s penalty kick and has continued to make excellent saves when it counts. As Diogo Jota recovers from an injury, Darwin Nunez will play more frequently in the attack alongside Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino.
Nottingham Forest roster, injuries, and team news
Lewis O’Brien, Renan Lodi, and Harry Toffolo are all recovering, though at different levels. Jack Colback, Moussa Niakhate, and Omar Richards are still sidelined. As for the starting lineup, Forest makes two adjustments with the additions of Kouyate and Awoniyi.
Liverpool’s roster, injuries, and team news
Joel Matip, Naby Keita, Arthur Melo, Luis Diaz, and now Diogo Jota are among the crucial players who are unavailable for Klopp. Darwin Nunez experienced a minor niggle against West Ham but should be fine, while Ibrahima Konate is still uncertain. In light of everything, Andy Robertson is reinstated to the starting lineup, along with Fabinho, Harvey Elliott, and Curtis Jones, who makes his long-awaited comeback. Due to a minor injury sustained in the previous week against West Ham, Darwin Nunez isn’t included in the roster.