Premier League: Liverpool Next for Flying Forest

Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool

Third plays first as the Premier League resumes this week and the third, Nottingham Forest, are eying a league double over leaders Liverpool.

Arne Slot’s Liverpool stayed six points clear at the top of the Premier League table thanks to a 2-2 draw with Manchester United at Anfield last time out, while Nottingham Forest won 3-0 away to improving Wolverhampton Wanderers and that was Nuno Espirito Santo’s sixth league win on the bounce. The pre-season relegation candidates are now Europe bound if they can hold it together, but how high they can actually go we don’t yet know.

Both teams came through the FA Cup unscathed this weekend as Liverpool swept aside Accrington Stanley 4-0 while Forest beat Luton Town 2-0 and now, back in the serious business of Premier League football Liverpool are seeking a victory to keep the chasing pack at bay; and that includes their hosts who will climb to within three points from the top if they can complete an historic double.

 

Talking Points

Can Forest make the Top Four?

If you’re looking for Premier League 2025 betting tips then Nottingham Forest to grab a European place is a fair bet now as they currently sit in third place and, with 18 games to play they have a seven point lead over Bournemouth in seventh. Just past the halfway stage Forest are the fifth favourites to actually win the league…FIFTH! Only Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea are at shorter odds.

Nuno’s return to his former club, Wolverhampton Wanderers, was another success for the Portuguese boss as his team won the key battles at either end of the pitch. With 12 goals Chris Wood is having the season of his life, but it is at the back where Forest have been even more impressive, conceding just one goal in their last six games with a dominant centre back pairing of the marauding Brazilian star Murillo and Serbian defensive rock Nikola Milenkovic.

If, and it’s a big ‘if’, Forest’s Premier League 2025 results are as good as the first 20 matches they will be back among the elite for the first time since Brian Clough’s legendary team were kings of Europe in 1979 and 1980.

 

Liverpool’s attacking riches

Forest may have the best defence in top flight football at the moment but they’ll need it on Tuesday when Liverpool come to town. The Reds have been famed for their front three prowess in recent years and this season it’s the Egyptian God Mo Salah, who is league top scorer with 18 goals and 13 assists in 19 games. Alongside Salah is the rapid Luis Diaz, who has scored eight league goals and made two assists and Cody Gakpo who has six strikes and a useful habit of bagging crucial goals in the big games. But Slot has another three strikers to call on, each of which would walk into most sides in the league. Fit again Diogo Jota started and scored in the victory over Accrington Stanley and he was assisted by Darwin Nunez, who was a first choice last season but is battling for his place under Slot. And then there’s Azzurri star and former Juventus forward Federico Chiesa who the manager has challenged to become one of the Reds’ greats after he opened his Liverpool account with a goal against Stanley. 

Salah and Gakpo were rested and Diaz was an unused substitute for the FA Cup tie and I expect all three to start against Forest, with the next three probably all on the bench…frightening!

 

History

The Reds have won eight of the last 14 meetings with Forest, losing three and drawing three. But they lost their home match against Nuno’s men 1-0 as Callum Hudson-Odoi silenced the KOP, it is Liverpool’s only league defeat this season, though when the Reds of Merseyside visited Nottingham last season they won 1-0.

Liverpool’s record away from home is seven wins and two draws but the hosts have been stronger in general in recent weeks, with six wins from their last six while Liverpool have won four, drawn one and lost one.

 

Betting Tip

As SBOTOP predictions go this one should be reasonably straight forward in normal times. But that Liverpool are at 1.65 and Forest at 4.05 shows just how highly Nuno’s team is now regarded and that makes this game a top end six-pointer. The draw is priced at 3.63 and I wonder if the league leaders would be happy to leave the City Ground unscathed, with at least a point to take back to Merseyside. I expect it to be an attack versus defence match and Nuno will have his side set up to frustrate and attack on the break.

   

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