Forest come close to a Cup upset, Steven Gerrard tells Bukayo Saka to toughen up and Leicester’s crisis looks to be over
Liverpool may have been under full strength but even in defeat it was a test emphatically passed by Steve Cooper’s burgeoning Nottingham Forest side. The hosts displayed impressive defensive discipline and shape to keep Liverpool out for 78 minutes, and arguably should have had a penalty soon after conceding. They almost certainly would have been awarded a spot-kick had Ryan Yates altered his direction slightly and aimed to draw more significant contact from Alisson, the kind of trick pulled so often by Premier League forwards for the benefit of the video assistant referee. The VAR decision to rule Diogo Jota onside for the winner was also very tight. Forest caused Jürgen Klopp’s men problems and had the chances to win the match outright but a lack of ruthlessness with the opportunities they created left Cooper’s side to ponder a couple of marginal decisions that could easily have gone the other way. As Joe Worrall said, Forest went “toe to toe with one of the best teams in the world”. Plenty of positives to take from that. Luke McLaughlin
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