Liverpool’s 1-0 win away at Nottingham Forest will go down as three factors that saved our Champions League chase alive, however the numbers present why it felt like such a wierd afternoon and why so many people have been nonetheless making an attempt to make sense of it at full-time.
Michael Reid, writing on , described it completely as a match that was “arduous work” in each route, together with the evaluation itself: “This was a correct, basic sport of two halves.”
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The story begins with how badly we started, as a result of Forest’s first-half shot rely was traditionally ugly from our perspective.
“The 12 pictures Nottingham Forest had have been probably the most the Reds have confronted within the opening 45 minutes of any league sport since Could 2015 in opposition to Stoke – sure, that sport.”
That’s the context for why the opening interval felt like we couldn’t put two passes collectively, even permitting for the disruption of Florian Wirtz pulling up within the warm-up and Curtis Jones being requested to fit right into a reshuffled construction that clearly didn’t settle till later.
Liverpool’s two-half break up is changing into the defining stat of our season
Stats through
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Reid’s wider level about our season profile is the one that ought to make Arne Slot most uncomfortable, as a result of it’s not only a one-off on the Metropolis Floor.
Should you solely rely first halves, Liverpool can be twelfth within the Premier League this season.
Should you solely rely second halves, Liverpool can be 4th.
We’re additionally scoring our third-fewest first-half objectives per sport in a league season in our historical past.
That doesn’t imply the second-half energy is a fluke, as a result of we have now repeatedly been higher after the interval, nevertheless it does underline how usually we’re leaving ourselves an excessive amount of to do, notably in away video games the place the gang can scent uncertainty early.
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Forest match stats present why it by no means seemed comfy
Even in a match we received, overview highlights how open it was and what number of moments we needed to journey.
Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool – key match stats
, both, and the Dutch coach successfully admitted we have been hanging on at occasions earlier than the sport modified: “A draw would have been a fairer outcome than a win for us.”
about our requirements: “The primary half wasn’t good in any respect; positioning, urgent, depth. It was not our commonplace.”
That’s the reason the Forest win felt like a “how did we try this?” second, as a result of the efficiency knowledge and the attention check matched for lengthy stretches, but we nonetheless discovered the late, messy, decisive second that turned a tough afternoon into a significant outcome.
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