Nottingham Forest defeats Liverpool: How Arne Slot's unbeaten start at Anfield ended

Under new manager Arne Slot, Liverpool's perfect record is finished. While Nottingham Forest's victory at Anfield for the first time in fifty-five years was a major victory for the visitors, it also begged the question of what the Reds can accomplish this year.

Here, we look at the manager's and players' reactions, professional analysis, and the numbers to understand how Liverpool's unbeaten run under Slot ended on Saturday.

Ineffective chance-making and Liverpool's poor xG

Against Forest, Liverpool's possession rate was 70%. It is therefore what they did, or rather did not do, with the ball that is the root of their troubles.

Their lowest anticipated goals total of the season thus far was 0.87. In fact, they only had one performance at Anfield last season that was below 1.00 in this category, against Arsenal in December 2023.

Sky Sports' Paul Merson questioned the tempo of Liverpool's play on Saturday and termed them boring - never an adjective associated to Liverpool in the Jurgen Klopp mould.

"I thought Liverpool were a bit boring," he stated. "I felt it moved slowly. Watching Klopp's teams play shows that they break at a hundred miles per hour. It appeared to simply go through the stages."

Slot wasn't pleased with Liverpool's performance in that area either. The Dutchman stated at his press conference, "We lost the ball so many times in simple situations." "We only managed to create three or four big chances, by far not enough."

Sunday is the first thing the inquest begins, he promised reporters later.

No impact made by substitues

One other incredibly successful aspect of Klopp's Liverpool was their in-game adjustments. The German was adept at making tactical adjustments at crucial junctures in games.

Slot made a triple substitution against Forest, inserting Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo, and Conor Bradley from the bench. Eleven minutes later, Liverpool gave up.

In the brief time they were on the pitch, neither Nunez—who only touched the ball eight times—nor Gakpo were able to try a goal. Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi, two of Forest's substitutes, combined for the winning goal in the meantime.

Goalie Alisson thought, "We didn't manage to play better - when we made the subs - with the ball." We didn't produce a lot of obvious opportunities. because we played some very bad football today, but they also played excellent defence."

But it was evident how much Slot needs his big men to play if Liverpool is to win the title this year. Among the many who vanished was Mohamed Salah.

Pause and resume game

Although it is true that Liverpool was unable to establish a decent rhythm, it is also important to note that the hosts committed 15 fouls compared to Forest's six. Slot was upset by the game's interrupted flow.

The inconsistent 90 minutes were as much Liverpool's fault as their opponents'.

Slot described the game as "stop-start." "You were unable to establish a solid rhythm, which prevented us from taking many opportunities. We needed to have improved our ball-handling skills."

The hosts were dragged into an unwelcome backroom brawl. Nuno Espirito Santo crammed five central midfielders—Ryan Yates and James Ward-Prowse among them—into the middle third, where they harassed, pestered, and interrupted play.

After Liverpool lost, Slot attempted to induce some coherence by switching up the formation, but it was too little, too late.

Nottingham Forest rebellious and dogged

It could also be crucial to admit that Forest did not necessarily deserve to win this match. Furthermore, Liverpool didn't deserve to lose that game.

However, who is more deserving does not always determine the outcome in the Premier League. Slot will now be aware of it.

This may go down in history as the day the Liverpool manager discovered how unforgiving the Premier League can be. Additionally, the Dutchman stressed in his press conference that Forest is not regarded as a top-10 team. This shows that even teams with seemingly lesser stature may surprise you.

Determination also had a role. Nuno realised it following the match. He remarked, "The players worked so hard." "We had Liverpool hanging on at the beginning, but we were able to stay in the game.

"Defensively we were really good."

Forest had 30 clearances, three defensive goal-bound shot blocks, and five saves from Matz Sels. Outstanding steel.

Susceptible to counter-attacks

Liverpool was also more sloppy than normal. Forest's strongest weapon, the counterattack, caught them off guard, and they were lethargic in possession, which explained the poor chance generation at the other end.

Slot reiterated his response when asked if his team's lack of focus could be linked to the international break. He claimed that his side's fighting until the last whistle showed that energy levels were satisfactory. In addition, Liverpool's points per game average (2.17) after the international breaks is higher than most (before to this one).

However, Liverpool's inept handling of transitional situations infuriated custodian Alisson: "We didn't adapt quick enough," he stated.

"Before we gave up a goal on a counterattack, we gave up three counterattacks. In those cases, we ought to defend it more effectively.

"Hudson-Odoi was too free to dribble inside and shoot with the ball however he pleased. It was a weak defence on our part."