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Nottingham Forest's success on Merseyside last season was a blip in an typically dominant English top division performances at Anfield for the Merseyside club. Their repeat now, a much more emphatic victory under the Forest boss, was symptomatic of the problems engulfing the faltering former winners.

Nottingham Forest's superb performance

The team was exemplary as they achieved their most significant victory at Anfield. Strikes from Murillo, excellent at each end of the playing surface, Nicolò Savona and the superb the playmaker inspired a merited success for a Forest side that also maintained a maid clean sheet in 20 division games.

Anfield's struggles

The Reds, on the other hand, were a disorganized as they suffered an 8th defeat in eleven matches to fall into the lower half of the league. Poor at set pieces, once more, ineffectual in offense, again, with Isak withdrawn after 68 anonymous minutes, and vulnerable at the back, they faltered in each phase to yield to a consecutive heavy defeat.

Initial control without reward

For half an hour Liverpool enjoyed the advantage, the occasional counter from the Forest attacker aside, but the shortcoming to capitalize on opportunities into the actual outcome of scores cost them dearly. Alexis Mac Allister was offered an initial chance from Gakpo's drive into the box only for Anderson to produce a excellent goalline clearance with his skull. He had a follow-up attempt deflected shortly after while dazzling control from Mohamed Salah created another short-distance chance for Milos Kerkez. A Forest defender just succeeded to put off the full-back into firing over.

Dead-ball vulnerability afflicts repeatedly

Liverpool's coach has often criticized his side's susceptibility to counterattacks and set pieces in the current campaign. He was given further evidence for complaint when the visitors took the lead through a blend of the two.

The Forest manager was shocked after Igor Jesus was unable to pass to the midfielder in an open area on the fast attack and gave the defender a chance to intervene. The resulting corner triggered ecstatic reactions in the visitors' bench, however, when Elliot Anderson's delivery touched Van Dijk to Murillo and the centre-half fired an unstoppable shot from close range into the opposite side. It brought reminders of Van Dijk's disallowed strike against the champions in the away team's first goal with the forward located in an illegal position in front of the home side's recovered goalkeeper the Brazilian.

Video Assistant Referee decisions and dispute

Unsurprisingly, the Liverpool captain was swift to highlight the parallels to the referee, Madley. But unlike Robertson at the Etihad Stadium, the forward made no obvious movement in front of the keeper and the score remained. Officials clarified: "The referee's call of valid strike was reviewed and upheld by the assistant – with it judged that the player was not in the line of vision of the goalkeeper and did not make an interference that impacted an opponent."

The home side were reprieved by the match officials and VAR two minutes later when Igor Jesus believed he had added to Nottingham Forest's lead.

The defender, who endured a terrible match, made an unconvincing try to remove an Sangaré's cross and turned the ball against the Forest striker, who handled before finding the lower corner of the goalkeeper's goal. Andrew Madley, in contact with his assistant referee, chalked off the effort for a handball that several replays found it hard to confirm or disprove. The authority said: "The decision of no goal was reviewed and supported by the video assistant – with it judged that Igor Jesus accidentally handled the ball before scoring."

Another score widens advantage

That was the end of the respite. Moments of the kick-off Mac Allister was unable to cut out a pass towards Neco Williams inside the home box. The full-back spun away from his defender and set up their next goal on a silver platter for partner defender the scorer, who picked out Alisson's upper corner with a simple side-foot finish.

Tactical substitutions fail

Arne Slot went for broke, replacing Konaté with the forward after the 55th minute and using the Les Bleus attacker with Alexander Isak. That experiment persisted for only less than a quarter-hour before Isak was replaced following another anonymous showing. Federico Chiesa and Rio Ngumoha were additionally added to the Anfield's frontline but sloppiness in possession and sturdy visitors' defense kept the home side at arm's length.

Final strike confirms the result

The visitors demonstrated the precision and penetration that Liverpool were lacking in the opposition half to put the contest {beyond doubt|out of reach|conclusively