Nottingham Forest's Ambitious Quest at Anfield

Nottingham Forest head to Anfield chasing a slice of history: a first-ever hat-trick of league wins on Liverpool’s turf. For a club that went more than half a century without a victory there, the idea would once have sounded fanciful. Not anymore.

This time, though, the backdrop is different. Both clubs are learning a new language under new managers, and both are still stumbling over a few early lines.

Iraola’s Liverpool still wide open

Andoni Iraola’s Premier League debut in charge of Liverpool ended with late drama and a point at St James’ Park, but the 2-2 draw with Newcastle also stripped away some of the gloss around his attacking intent.

Liverpool dominated the ball – 61% possession – and peppered Newcastle with 27 shots to 13. On paper, that’s control. On the pitch, it often looked anything but. Whenever Newcastle went direct, Liverpool’s structure cracked.

Anthony Elanga’s opener told the story. Newcastle won the ball in their own box and, just 10 seconds later, Elanga was finishing off a ruthless break. The second was just as brutal: Malick Thiaw stepped in to win possession, and 12 seconds later Joe Willock was sliding the ball past Alisson.

Two attacks, 22 seconds of chaos, and two goals conceded. Those moments didn’t just cost Liverpool points; they pushed an uncomfortable statistic further into the spotlight. Since the start of last season, no Premier League side has shipped more goals from fast breaks in all competitions. Liverpool lead that unwanted table with nine.

Now Iraola walks out at Anfield for his first competitive home game, tasked with protecting one of the club’s most reliable traditions. Liverpool have not lost their opening league match of the season at Anfield since 2003. Across 22 such fixtures, they have collected 17 wins and five draws. That record has survived different managers, different eras, and multiple rebuilds.

This one feels under threat.

Forest’s new habit at Anfield

For decades, Anfield was a graveyard for Nottingham Forest’s ambitions. Between 1969 and 2024, they did not win there in any competition. Then the dam burst.

Forest snatched a 1-0 victory in September 2024, then returned last November and tore into Liverpool with a 3-0 win that felt like a statement. Those two results, layered on top of their earlier success since returning to the top flight in 2022, have turned them into something of a bogey side.

In fact, since Forest came back up in 2022, no team has beaten Liverpool more often in the league than they have. Three wins – more than any other side in that period. For a club still re-establishing itself in the Premier League, that is a powerful psychological card to hold.

They arrive with another quiet source of confidence. Forest have scored in each of their last 10 Premier League away games, the longest active run in the division. Fifteen goals have flown in across their last five on the road alone. They may not always be polished, but they travel with a punch.

Glasner’s reality check and the Delap gamble

Like Iraola, Oliver Glasner is trying to reshape a big club with restless expectations. The early signs have been harsh.

Leeds United, under Daniel Farke, have already inflicted back-to-back defeats on Forest in the space of four bruising days, knocking them out of the League Cup and exposing how far Glasner’s ideas still have to go. Forest failed to score in either game.

After Tuesday’s cup loss, Glasner did not sugar-coat it. He pointed to the hangover from “nine months of relegation battle”, the loss of a key midfielder in Elliot Anderson, and the simple fact that he has only had six weeks with this group. No quick fixes, no miracles. Just hard work.

That theme showed in his first league line-up of the season. For a club that has become synonymous with frantic transfer windows, Forest’s summer has been relatively quiet, and none of the new signings started their opener. Stability, for once, has been the watchword.

The exception is big. Liam Delap has arrived as a club-record £50m signing, and his presence changes the mood. His time at Stamford Bridge yielded just one league goal in 28 games, a frustrating spell that stalled a once-surging reputation. Now he walks into a dressing room that badly needs a focal point and a fanbase eager for a new hero.

Delap will be desperate to prove that price tag is not a burden but a platform. For Forest, a striker with his profile, working in a team already comfortable hitting on the break and scoring away from home, could be exactly the weapon they need at Anfield.

Liverpool, still leaking chances in transition. Forest, thriving on fast breaks and carrying the memory of recent wins on this ground. Iraola guarding a proud opening-day home record. Glasner trying to drag a fragile squad into his image.

Something has to give.