2024-09-15 10:50:02
Callum Hudson-Odoi became the first player to score against Arne Slot’s Liverpool in the Premier League and what a sucker punch it proved to be.
Nottingham Forest tasted victory at Anfield for the first time since February 1969, as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side pulled off the most unexpected of victories.
Only Manchester City now maintain a 100 per cent record in the English top flight and Liverpool must go back to the drawing board after Slot’s fine start at Anfield came to an abrupt end.
Gregg Evans and James Pearce analyse the key talking points….
Slot’s first setback – how will his team react?
Slot left the pitch with a face like thunder as Liverpool’s perfect start to the season came crashing down at Anfield.
The setback comes as the first major blow to the head coach following his move from Feyenoord this summer.
Liverpool’s performance was lacking and despite a number of tactical changes throughout the game, it was the man in the away dugout who came up with the mastermind plan.
Hudson-Odoi celebrates putting Forest ahead (Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images)
Nottingham Forest stifled Liverpool in the first half and then held their nerve after taking the lead to see out the first victory at Anfield for 55 years.
Slot, who had managed everything so well in these early weeks of the season, had no answer and could not spark a turnaround. His team pushed and probed but there was no end product and eventually they ran out of steam.
With a busy run of games, it’s now on the Dutchman to pick the players up after a surprising defeat ahead of the return to the Champions League this week. It’s his first major test in the Liverpool hot seat.
Gregg Evans
Did the triple substitution pay off?
Slot had been deep in discussion with assistant Sipke Hulshoff on the touchline.
The groans from the stands were growing louder as attack after attack broke down and the final ball repeatedly let Liverpool down. A sense of frustration was growing as a scrappy contest remained goalless.
Just before the hour mark, the Dutch head coach took action with a bold triple substitution.
Alexis Mac Allister and Luis Diaz, who predictably faded following their international duties in South America, were replaced, along with Diogo Jota.
Trent Alexander-Arnold must have feared the worst when he saw Conor Bradley coming on but the vice-captain was moved into midfield to accommodate the Northern Irishman with Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo also introduced.
Yet rather than improve Liverpool, the changes actually made them even more disjointed. The lack of fluency was alarming as promising moves repeatedly broke down.
Nunez couldn’t provide the attacking focal point they needed as his control let him down and it became far too easy for Forest to play through the hosts when they counter-attacked.
Liverpool paid the price when Anthony Elanga picked out Hudson-Odoi, who cut inside past Bradley and curled a low shot into the far corner.
Liverpool react to going behind (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Slot responded with another tactical tweak as he went to three at the back — bringing on Curtis Jones for Ibrahima Konate, while Kostas Tsimikas replaced Andy Robertson — but to no avail.
James Pearce
Why did Liverpool offer so little up front?
On a day where one clinical finish from Nottingham Forest proved to be the difference, it was Liverpool who were clearly left lacking up top.
Slot picked the same forward line that had started the season so well, but there were no moments of magic. Liverpool had 70 per cent possession and 34 touches inside Forest’s box but generated an xG of just 0.87.
Mo Salah in particular was below par; first thwarted by Alex Moreno in the opening period and then so wasteful in possession after the break. Jota had three shots at goal but only one on target and was out of the game for large periods before his withdrawal on the hour.
Darwin Nunez was perhaps unfortunate not to get a start after spending additional time training over the past fortnight due to his international suspension with Uruguay, but when he came on he was quiet and couldn’t find a spark.
Diaz went close for Liverpool in the first half but was denied by the post, while his replacement Cody Gakpo had little impact as the hosts went chasing the game late on.
Federico Chiesa did not make the squad, but may be needed in the games ahead as Liverpool look to bounce back when they take on AC Milan in the Champions League next week.
Gregg Evans
What did Arne Slot say?
Speaking to BBC Radio 5Live, Slot said: “(It was) disappointing. Without the ball I think we did what we had to do — we hardly conceded from any counter-attack apart from the one that led to the goal. But you have to do much much better if you have 70 per cent ball possession; you have to create much more chances than the two, three or four we had. It would have helped as well if some of the individual performances had been a bit better today.”
What next for Liverpool?
Tuesday, September 17: AC Milan (A), Champions League, 8pm BST, 3pm ET
Saturday, September 21: Bournemouth (H), Premier League, 3pm BST, 10am ET
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(Top photo: Carl Recine/Getty Images))
