Arne Slott believes Nottingham Forest are in the Premier League title race and expects another tough test when they take Liverpool to the City Ground tomorrow night.
Forest defied pre-season expectations of a relegation battle with an impressive performance that saw them sit third in the table – six points behind leaders Liverpool having played a game more.
They have won six league games in a row, and a seventh would see them close to the Merseyside side.
“I've always said you can judge the standings better midway through the season,” Slott said. “That moment is there now. If Forest are with us and with Arsenal and Chelsea, they are certainly a team in competition with us and the others.
“If you look at the way they play and their results it is worth it. It will be a very tough 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
The Anfield defeat was not a huge shock – Slott
Forest has the distinction of being the only team to beat Liverpool in the league this season after a 1-0 win at Anfield in September.
“They really showed how good the team is,” he added. “When Liverpool lose a home game, it's something you don't expect. For us, losing that day was hard to take. Now, looking back and seeing where they stand in the league, the result wasn't as shocking as I thought at the time.
“They had a good game plan and I expect their wingers, who performed well, to be in the starting line-up tomorrow.”
Having given time to some of the club's key players during the weekend's FA Cup win over Accrington Stanley, Slott will remember the big players in the clash with Forest.
But defender Joe Gomez is still absent due to injury, while striker Darwin Nunez is suspended.
Praise for Nono
Liverpool can expect to have the bulk of the ball tomorrow evening, with Nuno Espirito Santo setting up Forest to counter-attack, a style that has paid off this season.
“They have a team that works hard without the ball and they can also keep the ball,” Slott said. “Chris Wood is a very good example of that.”
“They score and threaten on the counter a lot, but they also have quality when they want to play with the ball.
“Nuno has done a great job implementing a style of play that suits the players.
He added: “They are a team that rarely concedes goals. They don't take many risks in the build-up, so when they lose the ball, they have many players behind the ball and they defend with 11 players.
