Liverpool’s Premier League woes continued with a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest, marking their sixth loss in 12 games and pushing them into the bottom half of the table amid a disastrous title defence.
Liverpool sank deeper into their growing crisis after Nottingham Forest inflicted a demoralising sixth Premier League defeat in just the first 12 matches of the campaign.
The recent international fixture pause failed to provide any solutions for the reigning champions, as they were hit with a second straight 3-0 reverse during their disastrous defence of the title.
Usually formidable at Anfield—with their only prior home defeat coming against Manchester United—the comfort of their home stadium provided no solace here. Instead, Arne Slot’s squad suffered a distressing sixth loss in their last seven league games following goals by Murillo, Nicolo Savona, and Morgan Gibbs-White.
This latest setback leaves the Reds stranded in the bottom half of the table with a negative goal differential, forcing them to shift their ambitions from chasing first place to merely securing a top-four slot.
Express Sport critiques the individual player performances below, listed from goalkeeper to forwards.
Alisson Becker – 5
The Brazilian keeper made his return to the starting lineup but was unable to prevent the opposition from netting three goals. While he may not have been directly culpable for the strikes, his inclusion was not sufficient to inject the necessary stability into the failing defensive structure.
Dominik Szoboszlai – 4
Tasked with operating on the right side of the defence, he looked far more effective when he was able to drift into the middle ground, which is his natural position. The team sacrifices significant control and creativity when he is absent from the midfield engine room. He displayed decent attacking interplay with Salah, but his execution in key moments was often questionable.
Ibrahima Konate – 3
The centre-back was prone to repeated mistakes throughout the first half, and he was fortunate that Igor Jesus’ goal was narrowly disallowed for a questionable handball decision. His struggling day was cut short before the hour mark when he was substituted, continuing a season where he has played significantly below his expected standard.
Virgil van Dijk – 5
The skipper failed to adequately marshall the back four as they conceded yet another goal from a set-piece situation. Furthermore, he was unsuccessful in blocking the decisive strike from Morgan Gibbs-White that rubbed salt into Liverpool’s wounds during the latter stages of the fixture.
Milos Kerkez – 5
Reinstated into the starting lineup at left-back, he may feel he should have converted one of his chances when the score was still 0-0. Questions concerning his defensive reliability continue to persist.
Ryan Gravenberch – 5
He was comprehensively defeated in the critical midfield duel before later dropping back into the central defensive position. After a promising start to the season, the player has noticeably fallen short of his usual level for an extended period. He also picked up a caution.
Curtis Jones – 5
Although he achieved a high completion rate on nearly all his attempted passes, his performance was ultimately insufficient to establish the necessary control and tempo the team desperately needed in the middle third.
Alexis Mac Allister – 5
The midfielder showcased his attacking effort by forcing a defensive clearance off the line and drawing a solid save from Matz Sels with a powerful header. He worked diligently when off the ball but was unfortunately too easily bypassed in the build-up phase leading to the second Forest goal.
Mohamed Salah – 7
The Egyptian delivered an improved display, showing far greater involvement compared to recent fixtures and consistently attempting to manufacture opportunities for Liverpool. Despite his best efforts and creating several promising situations, he was isolated and lacked adequate support.
Cody Gakpo – 5
He was one of the few players who looked capable of injecting life into the attack during the first half but was ultimately unable to complete any decisive action. His failure to quickly track across and challenge Nicolo Savona directly contributed to the opposition’s second goal.
Alexander Isak – 3
The forward was practically invisible. He managed a mere 11 touches in the first half and only three more after the restart. His only attempt on goal was a completely miscued volley that went wide and harmlessly sideways.
Substitutes
Hugo Ekitike (Replaced Konate at 55 minutes) – 5
The forward’s introduction just before the hour mark failed to have any meaningful influence on the game’s trajectory.
Andy Robertson (Replaced Kerkez at 68 minutes) – 5
His main positive intervention was defensively, successfully blocking a powerful shot from Omari Hutchinson that would have otherwise led to a fourth goal.
Federico Chiesa (Replaced Isak at 68 minutes) – 5
The attacker replaced the ineffective Isak late in the second half but struggled to make any telling impact on the result.