Nottingham Forest stunned Liverpool on Saturday with a first win at Anfield in 55 years.
Callum Hudson-Odoi, formerly of Chelsea and England, came off the bench to score the game’s only goal in the second half, combining with another substitute in ex-Manchester United winger Anthony Elanga.
Liverpool had won all three league games without conceding before facing Forest, but were well beaten in front of their own fans by the tireless and well-organised visitors. Gone was their free-flowing start, replaced by a disjointed performance.
While the second half was open and stretched, the first period was a much more tense and stop-start affair. It took until the 18th minute for the first shot of the match, when Luis Diaz cut in onto his right and struck against the post.
Trent Alexander-Arnold tried to force the opener by shooting directly from a corner but goalkeeper Matz Sels pushed it clear, before riding his luck in the Forest net by avoiding an embarrassing own goal after dropping Luis Diaz’s looping header between his legs.
The hosts upped the ante as the first half wore on, with Alexis Mac Allister coming close with a header, but Nuno Espirito Santo’s side deserved to be level as the two sides headed for their dressing rooms at the interval.
It was Forest rather than Liverpool who grew in the opening moments of the second half, with four players involved in a flowing move which saw substitute Elanga waste the chance and hammer over.
Slot made three changes on the hour mark, bringing Conor Bradley, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo on in an attempt to force the issue.
Instead, Forest knitted together their finest attack of the afternoon and got their reward.
Elanga bent a precise pass around both Liverpool centre-backs and it arrived at the feet of Hudson-Odoi, who cut inside and curled past Alisson and in off the post. Liverpool had conceded their first goal of the season and they would fail to respond.
Forest defended resolutely, blocking a late effort by Dominik Szoboszlai and then watched as Virgil van Dijk nodded onto the roof of the net from a corner with the game’s final chance.
