Nottingham Forest are English Premier League title contenders, says Liverpool’s Arne Slot

LONDON – Arne Slot says high-flying Nottingham Forest “deserve” to be treated as English Premier League title contenders as he prepares Liverpool for a tricky trip to the City Ground on Jan 14.

Third-placed Forest, responsible for Liverpool’s only league defeat of the season, can move just three points behind the title favourites if they win a seventh straight league game in midweek.

Forest finished just outside the relegation places last season and their surge towards the top of the table is a big surprise.

But Slot, speaking at his pre-match press conference on Jan 13, said Nuno Espirito Santo’s team must be considered as serious rivals.

“I’ve always said that you can judge the table best halfway through the season, and that moment is there now,” said the Dutchman.

“So if Forest is up there with us, with Arsenal, Chelsea, (Manchester) City and all the others, then they definitely are a team that’s in competition with us and with the other teams.

“And they deserve to be treated like this if you look at the way they play, if you look at their results.

“So it’s going to be a very difficult challenge tomorrow to get a result.”

Forest, who have not conceded a goal in the Premier League since mid-December, beat Liverpool 1-0 at Anfield in September, although Slot said given their subsequent form, the result was not the shock it seemed at the time.

The rise of Nuno’s team has given the English top flight a retro look.

Forest, under then manager Brian Clough, challenged Liverpool’s dominance in the late 1970s, winning the league title in 1978 and then succeeding them as European champions.

“That’s been quite a long time ago and now they’re all back at it,” said Slot.

“They are doing really, really good and Nuno is doing an incredible job. But if you look at the amount of money they’ve spent, it’s not a complete surprise that they do well this season.”

Forest spent heavily on players after returning to the English top flight in 2022 following a 23-year absence, bringing in a huge number of new faces.

In March 2024 they were docked four points for breaching Premier League rules on spending but managed to avoid relegation.

“I expect the atmosphere (at the City Ground) to be fired up from the start, so it makes it even more important to not let them get going any more,” said Slot.

“They are a team that hardly concede goals. They don’t take many risks in their build-up play, so when they lose the ball they have many players behind the ball and they defend with 11 players.

“They have a hard-working team without the ball and they can also hold the ball. (Forward) Chris Wood is a very good example of that.

“They have scored and been a threat by counter-attacks a lot, but they also have quality when they want to play with the ball.

“Nuno has done a great job at implementing a style of play that suits the players.”

Slot himself has had a stellar first season at Anfield, winning 24 of 30 matches in all competitions, but he played down the start he has enjoyed since succeeding Jurgen Klopp.

“I’ve said many times if you go into a job, you don’t think about where we will be halfway through a season when it comes to the position in the league table,” he said.

“What you do try to focus on a lot is ‘Can we make the players really fit, can we make them work really hard and can we implement the playing style in the best possible way from the start?’.

“You never know what the other teams are going to do.”

Liverpool will be without Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez due to suspension, while defender Joe Gomez continues to be out with a hamstring injury.

Forest will miss midfielder Ibrahim Sangare, who has a thigh injury. AFP, REUTERS