Before today, Arne Slot's Liverpool reign had begun in ideal fashion with three wins from three and zero goals conceded. The Dutchman has had little to worry as his side have made a faultless start to the season.
The Reds have scored seven goals and had convincingly defeated bitter rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford.
However, everything has changed after the international break. The fourth game of the season saw Nuno Espirito Santo's Nottingham Forest make the trip to Anfield looking to add to the five points they had amassed during the opening three games of the season.
A 3-0 Liverpool victory in this fixture last season was always going to affect Forest's approach heading into the match.
But from the early stages of Saturday afternoon's clash, it was evident that the slickness of Liverpool's play in Old Trafford before the international break wasn't going to be on show today as a number of their key players looked off the pace.
Nottingham Forest had done their homework and the Merseyside club's key performers Mo Salah and Luis Diaz were well-marked by both full-backs Alex Moreno and Ola Aina.
But as they struggled to create chances against a stubborn Forest defence, they had to be wary of a threatening attack including Chris Wood, Morgan Gibbs-White and Nicolas Dominguez among others.
The game looked to be heading for a stalemate until former Chelsea man Callum Hudson-Odoi produced a moment of brilliance to put Forest ahead.
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Alisson On Liverpool Defeat - 'We Didn't Deserve To Lose'
The 1-0 victory for Forest sent shockwaves around the Premier League with the Reds dropping points for the first time this season.
Liverpool shot-stopper Alisson Becker was critical of his teams defending leading up to the winning goal by substitute Callum Hudson-Odoi in the 72nd minute. The Brazilian was speaking to Sky Sports following the defeat:
We played better than the opponent and didn't deserve to lose.
We conceded a goal on the counter-attack, we need to defend better. Hudson-Odoi had too much freedom to do whatever he wanted with the ball, dribbling inside and shooting.
(It was) poor defending from us, we have to improve for the next games.
"We played better than the opponent and didn't deserve to lose" 🤔
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson reacts after his side were beaten at home by Nottingham Forest 🔴 pic.twitter.com/ngAfCKLV3T— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 14, 2024
It doesn't get any easier for Liverpool as they open up their Champions League campaign on Tuesday night in the San Siro against AC Milan.
