Nottingham Forest-Liverpool Preview

Jurgen Klopp has no interest in looking beyond Saturday's game against Nottingham Forest, knowing Liverpool must realistically win every match to have a hope of qualifying for the Champions League.

The Reds are nine points behind fourth-placed Newcastle United with only eight games to play. Although they have a favourable schedule, time is running out for a team who have been wildly inconsistent.

Klopp acknowledged that inconsistency on Friday as he described Liverpool's "average season" that has included "a couple of the highest results in this club's history".

Ahead of the first of five remaining home matches, Klopp's full focus was on Forest.

"When you are in a super moment in a season, the only game you have to worry about is the next one," he said. "If you are not in a super moment, you also only have to worry about the next one. I could not care less about where we are playing after (Saturday), to be honest.

"Whatever we can do this season, the only thing that gives us any chance is to win our games. All our focus is on Nottingham."

Forest are on a 10-match winless run but won the reverse fixture, even if Steve Cooper recognises this is a very different task.

"Playing Liverpool at Anfield is different and we know everything that comes with that, but the moment we stop believing we can win games that's when it becomes really difficult," Cooper said. "It's a big challenge but a great challenge as well and one we're really tackling."

Liverpool – Trent Alexander-Arnold

Alexander-Arnold is thriving in a new hybrid midfield role, tallying three assists across his past two games, including the 50th of his Premier League career against Leeds United on Monday. He is the third-youngest player to hit that mark and is coming back into form at a key stage of the season.

Nottingham Forest – Taiwo Awoniyi

Awoniyi returned to the line-up against Manchester United last time out, making just his 10th start of the league season three months on from his ninth. He has been restricted to just four goals, but three of those have come in 1-0 wins, including against Liverpool. Now would be a good time to come up with another.

- Both the form book and the history books are quite clear on this one. Liverpool have lost only one of their past 37 home league games, while they are unbeaten in 23 home league games against Forest.

- That last Forest league win at Anfield was back in 1969, and to end that barren run would mean becoming only the third promoted team to do the double over Liverpool in the Premier League era.

- Including in the reverse match at the City Ground, Forest have only won this season when keeping a clean sheet, yet they have now conceded in 10 consecutive games, hence their winless run.

Liverpool 76.7 per cent

Forest 7.1 per cent

Draw 16.2 per cent

Updated April 21, 2023