Liverpool vs. Forest: a one-off horror show that the squad cannot afford to replicate

The Reds followed up a perfect start to the league with a woeful home defeat against Nottingham Forest.

Anfield © Tawney Estrella

Some people will brush this under the carpet, others will claim that the defeat will derail the whole season. The truth lies somewhere in the middle, albeit much closer to the forgiving side.

The Reds had 70% possession across the 90 minutes, but only managed to fashion one big chance, according to FotMob. The culprit? A lack of understanding between players on the day, as well as an incredibly rare poor display from Trent.

The full-back created four chances, more than anyone else on the pitch, but his delivery was just off during the whole match. The 25-year-old registered 69% passing accuracy and found his team-mates with just 50% of crosses, and 27% of long balls.

His frustration was evident, and he capped off the display with a late yellow card. In any case, however, the team should not be relying on one player to create attacking opportunities, even if that player is one of the most creative and ingenious players in European football.

Here Trent's team-mates further up the field let him down. Jota was unable to resemble anything like a focal point in attack, losing most of his duels, while the usually razor-sharp Salah was largely wasteful. Shots from good passing positions, wayward passing, it was a day to forget for the Egyptian.

This poor display up front did not happen in a vacuum of course. From the first minute, Forest set out to sit back and hit the home side on the counter, releasing Gibbs-White and Wood during transitions.

Their game plan was as frustrating as it was successful. Exaggerating contact, making tactical fouls, the first half especially was incredibly disruptive and it stopped Liverpool from gaining the attacking rhythm that saw them turn things around against Ipswich at the start of the season.

But Slot and his players will have known this. Teams that park the bus are irritating, but they often telegraph their entire game strategy from the first minute, and it is up to sides like Liverpool to break them down.

To this end, the Reds have more than enough difference makers in the team to break deadlocks. True, the injured Elliott was sorely missed, with his special ability to find a way through defences with pass or shot. But between Trent, Szoboszlai, Salah, Jota and Diaz, the quality is certainly there.

While the home defeat stings badly, the squad must dust themselves off and prepare for a gruelling eleven days that will throw three matches at them, across three different competitions.

Rare are the days when players like Trent and Salah both have a poor game, and today happened to be one of them. That's football, and we can't expect these players to be like machines every match.

If players from this starting eleven continue to display a lack of energy and creativity, however, Slot can and should turn to other options. The likes of Jones, Nunez, Gakpo and Bradley all provide a huge amount of quality, and it's up to the current crop to fight for their place.

Let's see how much fight this squad have in them over the next few weeks.