Liverpool v Nottingham Forest - A Quick Liverpool Perspective

Liverpool v Nottingham Forest A Liverpool Perspective




Iraola certainly showed that he is willing to make the big calls, not just dropping fan favourite Ngumoha, but also Gravenberch after their poor performances against Newcastle and shifted Gakpo from his usual left-wing berth to the right. Overall it did not quite work in the first half, with Forest the better team, but it did improve as the game went on and it was starting to work and gain control of the match before the subs. There are clear signs of some other changes as well.

I think I should start with the press. That starts at the front, which is a problem as Isak is an extremely weak link, he is the slowest to close down and applies pressure extremely weakly, leaving an easy out ball. In midfield, the combination of Szoboszlai and Mac Allister was much more disciplined than last week against Newcastle. Mac Allister mostly sat in, while Szoboszlai was usually 5 or so yards in front of him, but they were not being drawn out together, so there was usually one there on the cover all the time. Unfortunately that was usually Mac Allister and he does lack the mobility to get about the pitch and provide cover in behind the full-backs when they were attacking. Neither Jacquet nor van Dijk wanted to get drawn out wide to cover, so that left gaps for counters, which Forest were able to exploit. The major improvement was from the centre-backs, who did not simply keep dropping off but tried to hold a line and attack the ball with a bit of aggression.

Defensively there were also alterations to the setpiece defending, which had been horrendous last season. Frimpong is now the furthest forward, looking to use his pace to break on the counter and not letting his lack of height hamper the chances of clearing. The only issue is that the rest of the team has to adapt, someone needs to cover. Mainly that was Szoboszlai, but on the first Forest goal no one did, so it left space for a simple goal. That is something that needs to be worked on. Someone has to be filling in until Frimpong can return to station.

Going forward there were some better signs, a few more early runs which the players picked out, but unfortunately most of those passes ended up with Isak, who weakly surrendered possession or failed to get onto them after being outpaced by defenders. There were some better signs, certainly down the right side Gakpo and Frimpong caused problems though they did not quite link up as a pair. Often Frimpong's runs with the ball just ended up with him losing possession in a crowd.



Nottingham Forest


Forest were the better team in the first half but in the second tried to sit in and defend, ceding control and it nearly cost them all the points, but for a very disputed penalty. Overall though, they can go home satisfied with a massive improvement in their performance level and a deserved point. They did need a lot of work and the addition of a transition coach (James Holland) may have had a major effect as their attacks were very much on the transition. It was all about picking off the ball and moving it forward quickly and keep it moving forward. They had lots of runners and looked to exploit any space left by Liverpool players being forward.

They do have issues, Williams on the left being the main one. I love his enthusiasm and work rate, but he is not the best defender and it is no coincidence that the right flank was where Liverpool created most of their danger. His defending on the first Liverpool goal was shocking in particular. He sold himself far too easily. He did the same earlier when Frimpong did his spin in the box, he was lucky that there was cover as his defending was horrible there too and early in the second half when Gakpo spun him. He is far too rash and, on another day, his defending would have cost more goals. Ndoye is also another weakness, as he has the same annoying trait as Mac Allister, in that he looks to constantly throw himself to the ground under no challenge or when he has committed a foul to try and win a decision. If he just stayed on his feet, so often he would be in a dangerous position with the ball. He did take his goal well, which is all the more annoying as he could have so many more chances to shoot if he was not throwing himself about!

In the centre of midfield, Schlager did well putting himself about, but is limited on the ball, which leaves the main creative influence in there being McAtee, who started really well but faded out of the game before he was taken off. What they really need is another Gibbs-White to play in there. Actually two, so one can replace Ndoye as well! That is one player who is in no way a weakness, Gibbs-White was their best player. They have a solid defence and the brilliance of Gibbs-White (how on earth did he not make the England squad in the summer?) which gives them a platform to build on and they are going to be a difficult team to beat when they are fully adjusted to Glasner's system.



Liverpool


Alisson - showed he is still a top keeper, not just making saves but being quick to react to danger. Looked much more like himself.


Frimpong - he is getting slaughtered for the first goal, but he was doing his job on set pieces, which is to be the high man and then he looked to press the ball, which is correct. The mistake was by the rest of the team to not adjust for it. Gakpo was just stood watching instead of tracking back, none of the central midfielders were covering, probably because Gakpo was out there and had Ndoye covered initially, and so there was just a big gap. Not his fault at all. My biggest bugbear with him was his tendency to just run into blind alleys with the ball and fall over looking for a free kick, when he should have laid the ball off earlier. Overall, he was nothing like as bad as people are making out, but there is still a lot of room to improve as well.


Jacquet - needs to be a bit more aggressive, he is a very similar defender to van Dijk in a lot of ways but needs to get on the front foot more and attack the ball, rather than waiting for it to come to him. Absolutely caught napping on Forest's second, he was in a good position to deal with Williams but fell asleep and let him run off him and failed to react quickly enough to get back when he did realise.


van Dijk - a much better performance, with the big Dutchman making more of an effort to hold a higher line and attack the ball, rather than dropping off. He has clearly lost a yard or even two of pace though.


Kerkez - needs to do better on the ball but he showed flashes, such as his pass to Gakpo just after the first goal, which Gakpo should have done more with.


Szoboszlai - much better from him in midfield, but he still lacks defensive awareness and has this annoying habit of just going and standing alongside Isak in the frontline when the team have the ball. There is usually a nice space between the defence and midfield where he could be to receive the ball or make runs from, but he just wants to push into an area where he can do nothing and be closely marked. Ended up at right-back, where he showed he can play with discipline.


Wirtz - finally getting some movement to pick out and he is doing so. Still not enough, but there is improvement and it is giving him options. Had an excellent finish for a goal which was chalked off, unfortunately. Got an assist on the second goal with some excellent play and generally caused them a fair few problems with his movement as well. Worked so


Mac Allister - a disciplined performance, with some nice through passes, but his lack of mobility and defensive awareness is always a hindrance in this role. With him there, the flanks will always be wide open to counters, he does not read the play and then lacks mobility to get across late.


Munoz - looked good on either side. Worked very hard and was always working back to provide extra cover. Scored a good goal. Has pace and strength.


Isak - so slow and weak, but showed some good movement, if only he was not too slow and weak to either get to the ball in behind or to hold onto the ball into his feet. Scored a goal, but the rest of his contribution was poor. His contribution to the press is neglible, almost lazy.


Gakpo - at fault badly on Forest's first goal, failed to track the runner even though Frimpong was forward from the set piece and he could see him pressing in front. Was obviously asked to play high, in a similar way to the way Salah did, in open play, looking to press the defence rather than dropping in. Constantly rolled Williams easily and played an excellent ball across for the first equaliser. He had probably been Liverpool's most dangerous player before coming off.


Ngumoha - replaced Gakpo in the 71st minute. First touches were good, beating a man and then laying the ball and making a run in behind, but the return ball never came. After that he seemed to revert to the usual and waiting for the ball to come to him to feet.


Tsimikas - was brought on in the stead of Kerkez in the 71st minute. His right foot is still just a swinger, that is for sure.


Gravenberch - the third player to come on in the 71st minute triple substitution, replacing Frimpong. Showed flashes of his ability to protect the ball and even managed to complete a pass after. Much better but the circumstances meant he was able to stay higher up the pitch, so his lack of positional discipline was not an issue.


Araujo - took the place of Jacquet in the 77th minute. The defence looks much more solid with him in the backline, due to his aggression. Iraola may have a decision to make, as the pairing of Jacquet and van Dijk looks too laid back and either paired with Araujo might be a more balanced pair.


Nyoni - subbed on for Mac Allister in the 77th minute. There are signs that he could be the answer in there, he has the positional discipline and mobility, along with good ability on the ball, but his defensive awareness was not really tested enough to know if he is ready to take up that spot. Also could do with a bit more bite in the tackle, plus filling out a bit physically.

Written by Tris Burke September 04 2026 13:15:09