Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest Prediction | PL 2026/27

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Forest Have Made Anfield Uncomfortable

Liverpool host Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday 29 August in Matchday 2 of the Premier League — a fixture that has stopped being a formality. Forest have won at Anfield in two of their last four visits, including a 3-0 win on 22 November 2025, and that 3-0 remains the widest margin any visiting side has managed at Anfield in this sample. With the season barely started and nothing settled anywhere, the early-season question is whether Liverpool have closed the specific hole Forest keep finding.

The State of Liverpool FC

No competitive results exist yet this season for either club, so form is not a guide here — what is a guide is the shape of the squad Arne Slot has to pick from, and it is heavily weighted toward the back and the flanks.

The goalkeeping situation alone tells you something about the club’s planning: Alisson Becker, Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, Vítězslav Jaroš and Harvey Davies is an unusual depth of registered options. Alisson remains the man whose sweeping behind a high line makes Slot’s territorial approach viable; Mamardashvili is the succession plan and the insurance.

In front of him, Virgil van Dijk organises everything. Slot’s Liverpool defend a long way up the pitch, and that only works if the centre-back pairing wins duels in space rather than in a compact block. Van Dijk’s partners on the registered list — Joe Gomez, Ronald Araújo, Giovanni Leoni, Jeremy Jacquet — offer contrasting profiles, from Gomez’s recovery pace to Araújo’s front-foot aggression in one-v-one situations. Against a side that hunts transitions, which of those Slot picks matters more than it would against a possession opponent.

The full-back group is where Liverpool’s attacking width now comes from. Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley on the right are both natural chargers into the final third; Milos Kerkez and Kostas Tsimikas on the left offer different things, Kerkez as an overlapping runner, Tsimikas as a deliverer from deeper positions. Calvin Ramsay adds another right-sided option. Slot’s system asks these players to invert or push high depending on the phase, and it is precisely the space they vacate that Forest have historically attacked.

The State of Nottingham Forest FC

Forest’s registered group is built around a back line that has been genuinely difficult to break down. Nikola Milenković and Murillo have formed one of the more physically imposing central pairings in the division, Milenković winning almost everything aerial and Murillo covering ground behind. Ousmane Diomande and Morato give further senior cover, with Zach Abbott and Tyler Bindon as younger options.

Matz Sels has been the reliable presence behind them, with Steven Benda and John as alternatives. The full-back list — Ola Aina, Neco Williams, Nicolò Savona, Omar Richards, Luca Netz, Jair Paula — is deep and versatile, and Aina and Williams in particular are used as much for their ability to carry the ball forward at speed as for their defending. That is the club’s identity in miniature: absorb, then go.

Forest’s success at Anfield has come from exactly that model. They do not need the ball to hurt Liverpool. In the four meetings hosted by Liverpool in this sample, Forest have won two — the 0-1 on 14 September 2024 and the 0-3 on 22 November 2025. Both times they conceded territory and took what came.

Head-to-Head

The last eight meetings split Liverpool 4 wins, Forest 3, one draw. At Anfield across the last four, it is 2-2 with no draws — a genuinely even record in a fixture that used to be one-way.

The most recent meeting went Liverpool’s way: 0-1 at Forest’s ground on 22 February 2026. Before that, the 0-3 at Anfield in November 2025 was the widest margin in the sample alongside Liverpool’s own 3-0 home win in October 2023.

The scorelines have generally been tight. Five of the eight meetings finished with two goals or fewer in total, and no team has scored more than three in any single fixture. Liverpool have found the net in five of the eight and hit three or more twice; Forest have scored in five and reached three once.

👀 What to Watch

The Liverpool full-backs against Forest’s counter-attacking wide players. Frimpong and Kerkez are both attackers by instinct, and Slot’s structure pushes them high. Forest’s route to goal in their two Anfield wins came through the channels those players leave behind, with Aina and Williams carrying into space rather than waiting for a build-up. Whether Slot picks Bradley or Tsimikas — the more conservative options — over the more aggressive pair would be a real tell about how he reads the threat.

The second is aerial. Milenković and Murillo defending set pieces against Van Dijk and Araújo attacking them is a matchup of genuine physical parity, and in a fixture where five of eight meetings have produced two goals or fewer, a dead ball may well be the difference.

🔮 Prediction

Our model gives Liverpool a 55% chance, with the draw at 26% and Forest at 19%, on an expected-goals line of 1.6–0.9. The model puts both teams scoring at 47% and over 2.5 goals at 46% — both marginal, both consistent with a head-to-head record where low-scoring games are the norm.

The reasoning is straightforward: home advantage and squad depth push Liverpool clear as favourites, but the tight xG margin reflects how well Forest’s centre-back pairing has handled this fixture. If anything, 19% may understate Forest given they have won two of the last four at Anfield — though the model is right that a repeat is the less likely outcome.

These are model projections — not betting advice. Wager responsibly.

Prediction: Liverpool FC 1-0 Nottingham Forest FC

Practical Info

Kickoff is 12:30 BST (Sat 29 Aug) / 7:30 AM EDT (Sat 29 Aug) / 13:30 CEST (Sat 29 Aug) at Anfield.

Where to watch: Sky Sports, TNT Sports & BBC Match of the Day (UK) / NBC Sports & Peacock (US)

FAQ

What time is Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest?

Kickoff is 12:30 BST (Sat 29 Aug) / 7:30 AM EDT (Sat 29 Aug) / 13:30 CEST (Sat 29 Aug).

Where is Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest being played?

At Anfield in Liverpool, in Matchday 2 of the 2026/27 Premier League season.

How can I watch Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest?

Sky Sports, TNT Sports & BBC Match of the Day (UK) / NBC Sports & Peacock (US).

Who won the last meeting between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest?

Liverpool won 1-0 at Nottingham Forest's ground on 22 February 2026. Before that, Forest won 3-0 at Anfield on 22 November 2025.

What is the predicted score for Liverpool FC vs Nottingham Forest FC?

Liverpool FC 1-0 Nottingham Forest FC. The model's 1.6–0.9 expected-goals line and a head-to-head sample where five of eight meetings produced two goals or fewer both point to a narrow home win.