Liverpool manager Arne Slot's tactical acumen will be fiercely tested when his side face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Tuesday evening, Reds expert David Lynch has claimed.
The Merseysiders come into the clash first in the Premier League and are six points ahead of second-placed Arsenal and third-placed Nottingham Forest while having a game in hand on both teams.
Slot has only been beaten once in the top flight so far this campaign, losing 1-0 against Tuesday's opponents at Anfield on September 14, and the Reds boss has frequently referenced the defeat in press conferences as a performance to avoid repeating.
Lynch believes that Liverpool will almost certainly adapt their approach from the reverse fixture to counter Nottingham Forest's strengths, telling Sports Mole: "Forest play the type of football you want to play if you want to bloody the nose of a so-called bigger team. Sitting in deep, frustrate them and [use] electric pace on the counter. Big height up front as well for set pieces.
"[Liverpool] watched a lot of tape [from] that first [game at Anfield], and Nottingham Forest will approach it in a different way this time. The wingers will probably start the game and Slot's right to expect that, so he'll be more focused on that final half hour, looking back over [Forest's] last six games, [learning] from those about how Liverpool can suppress them.
"It's going to be a good test of Slot and how he adapts. To lose two games to Nottingham Forest, it'd be a huge shock, so it's all about can the manager come up with a tactical plan?"
Opposition manager Nuno Espirito Santo did not start either of Callum Hudson-Odoi or Anthony Elanga in attack at Anfield, meaning the Reds could face an even tougher challenge on Tuesday.
How can Liverpool improve upon their defeat last time out?
Nottingham Forest have already won 40 points after just 20 league outings this term, eight more than they did in the entirety of 2023-24.
The Garibaldi's possession average of 39.5% is the lowest figure in the entire division, while they have also averaged 4.7 shots on target per game, just the joint 11th best return of the 20 clubs in the top flight.
When asked about the challenges that Nottingham Forest will pose, Lynch told Sports Mole: "It feels like the toughest one, particularly because Nottingham Forest are in such good form at the moment. Seven wins on the bounce, so they are flying. It does look really tricky.
"Can [Liverpool] be one of the few sides in the Premier League - because it hasn't happened often - who can suppress that counter-attack, who can stop them hurting you, who can pen Nottingham Forest in and stop them getting out against you? On top of that, can they be the one to unpick that lock of that deep defence?
"It's very, very difficult because not only is it a deep defence, which is always tricky, but they've got quality in there as well, but it would feel like a statement about [Slot] and his team [if they won], so I'm really hopeful that Liverpool can do it."
It should be noted that Forest have played the deepest defensive line of any team in the Premier League and are not afraid to let their opponents build play unopposed.
Liverpool struggled to cope with the number of players that Espirito Santo packed into central areas last time out, so perhaps Slot could invert right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold in order to match up with their numbers in midfield.
Additionally, the Reds could push Alexis Mac Allister into an advanced position to help play between their defensive lines, while Diogo Jota could help pin their back five.
© Imago
Are Nottingham Forest Liverpool's Leicester City?
When Liverpool won the Premier League title in 2019-20, they did so by assailing an insurmountable lead early in the season, but there was a time when Leicester City were seen as the Reds' closest challengers.
Jurgen Klopp oversaw a 4-0 victory against the Foxes at the King Power Stadium in late December 2019, and the win moved his side 13 points clear at the top of the table.
A victory on Tuesday would see the Reds go nine points clear of their rivals with a game in hand, and Lynch expressed his belief to Sports Mole that three points could be a real statement to the rest of the league.
Lynch said: "I think [Liverpool] were unfortunate to draw the Manchester United game in terms of the balance of the chances. They were a far better side, and they were unlucky to lose the Tottenham game in terms of the way that last 10 minutes panned out.
"You have to get back to winning by hook or by crook, so it is important and because of this, the state of how the table is, you don't want to give Forest belief that they are actually in the title race. You don't want Arsenal to get a sniff of it, so it's really important to go out there and win.
"You've got to go and play well there, even though it's difficult. It feels massively important that Liverpool get back to winning ways, but if they do it in this particular game, I feel it would give them such a boost that you'd come away from it thinking that - the title [wouldn't be] wrapped up - but it's going to be so hard to see past Liverpool."
Though much has been made of Liverpool's draw with Manchester United and defeat against Tottenham Hotspur, the Reds still rank as the league's best offensive and joint second-best defensive team in the top flight, and fans should feel confident that Slot can help the club earn a positive result on Tuesday.
Lewis Nolan
