Liverpool secured a dramatic 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday, April 22, 2023. Diogo Jota scored a double and Mo Salah added a goal to give the Reds three points despite some poor defending.
Jurgen Klopp named an unchanged side for the third game running, with Diogo Jones and Curtis Jones both starting for the fifth consecutive game. Thiago, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez were left on the bench.
Liverpool saw plenty of the ball early on but Forest’s deep defence made it difficult to break down the opposition from open play. The best chances of the opening half an hour all came from set pieces, but none of them were converted. The best chance came for Jota, who headed wide from three yards out from a free-kick.
The breakthrough came two minutes into the second half when Fabinho headed back across goal from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s corner and Jota headed in from close range for his third goal of the week after a year-long drought.
Unfortunately, the lead didn’t last long as Neco Williams’ shot deflected off Robertson and into the top corner. But four minutes later, Jota restored the lead with a superbly controlled and finished header from Robertson’s free-kick.
Klopp replaced Fabinho and Gakpo with Thiago and Nunez on the hour, now having a strong, fully-fit squad to choose from. Morgan Gibbs-White equalised for Forest with a completely unmarked shot from 12 yards out on the penalty spot, but Liverpool restored their lead within three minutes when Salah steered home Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick despite being under pressure.
Forest almost equalised again when Brennan Johnson hit the bar, and Nunez had a chance to put the game to bed but couldn’t put his header on target from four yards out. Despite some shocking defending, Liverpool managed to hold on for the win which puts them six points off fourth place with seven games left to play. TIA Man of the Match was Diogo Jota.