Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest: Can The Reds Continue Winning Streak? | OneFootball

Liverpool v Nottingham Forest – Premier League Preview

Venue: Anfield

Kick off: 15:00

The international break has finally ended so that Premier League football can resume, much to the delight of the Merseyside fanbase. Arne Slot has started brilliantly in his new role as Liverpool Head Coach, whereas his weekend counterpart, Nuno Espírito Santo, will also be pleased with the early season form of his Nottingham based team. The 3:00 oclock kick off time on a Saturday afternoon is a rarity for the mighty reds, especially with the infamous lunch time kick (12.30hrs) usually reserved for the return from national breaks. The reds have a wonderful chance to continue their unbeaten start to the campaign and ensure that the juggernaut of Manchester City is reigned in, as a pair of home league games await. The cup competitions are also on the Liverpool horizon, as both the Champions League and EFL Cup begin to enter the vision of the illustrious club. Survival and subsequent progression will be all that is required of Forest and their manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, which makes this game about staying in contention with the hope of a valuable draw.

The Nottingham Forest Availability

In terms of availability, Danilo and Willy Boly, are both currently injured and not available for selection. There will of course be one or two post international issues, however, a nearly full roster of healthy assets will be available to the former Wolves manager, Nuno Espírito Santo.

Regarding early season form, the most recent outing of last season’s relegation fighters ended in a 1-1 draw at the City Ground, with Wolverhampton Wanderers earning a much-needed point. Prior to that stalemate, a solid 0-1 away win at Southampton was recorded after another 1-1 home draw, as Bournemouth failed to overcome a resolute Forest side. One more 1-1 scoreline availed itself after the Saints win the midweek before Bournemouth, yet that EFL Cup second round encounter eventually ended with a penalty shootout loss to their cup opponents, Newcastle United. After three games played in the English top tier, five points have been collected thus far, which has allowed the visitors a comfortable 9th place position in the Premier League table.

Photo: IMAGO

A predicted line up for the away team is listed below, in a 4-2-3-1 formation. A level of patience will be demanded of this line up, as the likes of Murillo and Nikola Milenković will be asked to keep things simple. The pace and trickery of both Anthony Elanga and Anthony Elanga will be vital to any counter opportunities, whilst I suspect that Chris Wood will be replaced by Taiwo Awoniyi at the point of the visiting attack.

GK – Matz Sels

RB – Neco Williams

RCB – Nikola Milenković

LCB – Murillo

LB – Ola Aina

CM – Elliot Anderson

CDM – Ibrahim Sangaré

ACM – Morgan Gibbs-White

RM – Anthony Elanga

CF – Taiwo Awoniyi

LM – Callum Hudson-Odoi

The Liverpool Availability

In terms of injures, Curtis Jones is now back in full training and primed for consideration, with Federico Chiesa also likely to be in contention for a call up to the first team squad. The inevitable injury that arose from the international break, saw the former Fulham academy graduate, Harvey Elliott, sustain a fractured foot in training. His assessment in the last few days has determined a six-week recovery time, therefore, the 21-year-old will not be an option for selection until perhaps early November. The controversial round of international fixtures will now mean that some mild rotation is needed over the next batch of games, with minutes played and distances travelled all perhaps playing a part in decisions. A clean bill of health appears to be apparent for the remainder of the group, though that could change before Saturday afternoons kick off. Alexis Mac Allister may have a sustained a slight injury whilst with Argentina and will likely not be rushed back into the first team.

Below is the team I believe the Dutch boss, Arne Slot, will start for this next Anfield encounter. Liverpool have started the season brilliantly and will look to overwhelm and overcome a Forest team that may be underprepared for an elite level opponent. Curtis Jones and Darwin Núñez have both been at the AXA Training Centre for this past fortnight, therefore, could be set for their first starts of the season.

GK – Alisson Becker

RB – Trent Alexander Arnold

RCB – Ibrahima Konaté

LCB – Virgil van Dijk (c)

LB – Andy Robertson

CM – Ryan Gravenberch

CM – Curtis Jones

ACM – Dominik Szoboszlai

RF – Mohamed Salah

CF – Darwin Núñez

LF – Luis Díaz

How Will This Contest Play Out

Liverpool will look to stay solid and diligent from the outset, as they continue to impress in their defensive third. Following three clean decisions sheets from the opening three games played, it will be up-to the likes of the superb Morgan Gibbs-White, and the former Liverpool striker, Taiwo Awoniyi, to find a way through the stubborn defensive line. Ultimately, the home side are in a rich vein of form and likely to carve their opponents open from varying avenues. The contest between Mohamed Salah and Murillo could be an intriguing watch, as the Liverpool recruitment team appear keen to target the giant Brazilian defender in the upcoming transfer windows.

Player to watch – Ryan Gravenberch

Score Prediction;

Liverpool 2 – 0 Nottingham Forest