Nottingham Forest Seek First Points at Anfield Against Liverpool

Nottingham Forest head to Anfield on Saturday still empty-handed this season, chasing their first points after a bruising opening week that has already delivered two defeats.

A loss to Leeds United on the Premier League’s opening weekend was followed by an early Carabao Cup exit days later. The campaign has barely started, but Oliver Glasner already finds himself trying to halt a slide.

And yet, Anfield is not the fortress it once was for Forest. Not for this group. They have won on each of their last two visits, a rare streak of success on Merseyside that offers at least a sliver of belief against heavyweight opposition.

Forest’s injury picture and selection calls

The squad is not at full strength. Nicolo Savona and Ryan Yates remain sidelined and will play no part, limiting Glasner’s options in the middle of the pitch.

There is, however, fresh blood. Summer arrivals Ousmane Diomande and Xaver Schlager both made their full debuts in midweek’s Carabao Cup tie and did enough to stay in the conversation for Anfield. Both are pushing hard to keep their places in the starting XI, and Glasner has reported no new fitness issues from that game.

The Austrian has spoken candidly about the scale of the rebuild at the City Ground. His Forest is a work in progress, a squad still learning each other’s movements and habits, up against Premier League sides that have grown together over several seasons. That gap in familiarity is real. He knows it. His players know it. The question is whether structure and intensity can bridge it, even temporarily, on a stage like this.

Shape, key men and a familiar Anfield threat

Forest’s likely shape is clear. Murillo, Nikola Milenković and Diomande are expected to lock in as a back three, a physically imposing unit that will need to withstand long spells without the ball.

In front of them, a hard-running midfield four should offer the shield: Ola Aina and Neco Williams operating as the wide outlets, Ibrahim Sangaré and Schlager patrolling the centre. If Forest are to survive the inevitable Anfield surges, that quartet will have to be relentless.

The creative burden, once again, falls on Morgan Gibbs-White. He has either scored or assisted in half of Forest’s last six games at Anfield, a record that underlines his importance in this fixture. He is set to drift in behind Igor Jesus, linking with Dan Ndoye in the pockets where Forest will hope to hurt Liverpool on the break.

It is a plan built on precision. Chances will be scarce. Gibbs-White cannot afford an off day.

Predicted Nottingham Forest XI

Nottingham Forest possible starting XI (3-4-2-1): Sels; Murillo, Milenković, Diomande; Aina, Sangaré, Schlager, Williams; Gibbs-White, Ndoye; Igor Jesus.

Kick-off time and how to watch

The Premier League clash at Anfield kicks off at 12:30 on Saturday, 29 August 2026.

In the UK, the game will be shown live on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate.

Forest arrive without points, still searching for rhythm, but with recent memories of winning on this ground. Anfield has a habit of exposing uncertainty. This weekend will show whether Glasner’s rebuild is ready for that kind of scrutiny.