Arne Slot believes Nottingham Forest are in the race for the Premier League title and awaits another tough test when they take on Liverpool at the City Ground tomorrow night.
Forest have defied pre-season predictions of a relegation battle with a superb run that sees them sit third in the table – six points behind leaders Liverpool having played a game more.
They have won six league games on the spin and a seventh would see them close in on the Merseysiders.
Slot said: “I’ve always said you can judge the table better halfway through the season. This moment is here now. If Forest are up there with us, Arsenal and Chelsea, then they are definitely a competitive team with us and the others.
“If you look at the way they play and their results, then it’s worth it. It will be a very difficult challenge for us to get a result.”
🗣️ “They deserve to be treated like this!”
Arne Slot comments on whether he thinks Nottingham Forest are title contenders 🏆 pic.twitter.com/gGii5eU8gI
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 13, 2025
Defeat at Anfield no shocker – Slots
Forest hold the distinction of being the only side to beat Liverpool in the league this season, having triumphed 1-0 at Anfield in September.
“They’ve already shown in retrospect what a good team they are,” he added. “When Liverpool lose a home game it’s something you don’t expect. It was hard for us to lose that day. Now, looking back and seeing where they are in the league, it’s not as much of a shock as I thought it was at the time.
They had a good game plan and I expect the wingers, who did so well, to be in their starting line-up tomorrow.
Having handed some of the club’s fringe players game time in the weekend’s FA Cup win over Accrington Stanley, Slott will recall the big guns for the clash with Forest.
However, defender Joe Gomez remains out through injury, while striker Darwin Nunes is suspended.
Praise for Nuno
Liverpool can expect to have most of the possession tomorrow night with Nuno Espirito Santo setting Forest up on the counter-attack, a style he has reaped this season.
Slott said: “They have a hard-working team without the ball and they can keep the ball as well. Chris Wood is a very good example of this.
“They have scored and are a threat from counter-attacks, but they also have quality when they want to play with the ball.
“Nuno has done a great job of implementing a style of play that suits the players.
“They are a team that hardly concedes goals. They don’t take many risks in their preparation, so when they lose the ball they have a lot of players behind the ball and they defend with 11 men.”
