Prior to the international break Liverpool suffered a chastening 3-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

Considering Pep Guardiola’s side are perennial title challengers, you can excuse that blemish on Arne Slot’s copybook.

However, as the Reds welcomed lowly Nottingham Forest to Anfield on Saturday, it was a wonderful opportunity to build some momentum and find some form ahead of a kinder run of fixtures.

How disastrous it has started. Slot’s job was brought under further scrutiny as his men were downed 3-0 in front of their own fans. Gulp, this was not what Liverpool needed.

Across their last 11 games, they have only won three games. This is certainly not the team that won the Premier League at a canter last term.

At the centre of their issues has been Ibrahima Konate.

Konate's performance vs Nottingham Forest

Last season, Trent Alexander-Arnold didn’t quite throw in the towel but his performances were abject as he pursued a move to Real Madrid.

This season, the same thing appears to be playing a factor in the performances of Konate who looks a shadow of his former self.

The Frenchman has been error-ridden this season and his display against Forest summed everything up.

Analyst Raj Chohan took to social media to exclaim that “every time he makes one error, he makes multiple.”

He was notably at fault for the controversial moment that Igor Jesus was involved in when his goal was disallowed for handball.

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The Brazilian completely caught out Liverpool’s underperforming centre-back as he threw himself to the floor and was fortunate that it was ruled out.

So poor was Konate’s display that he was dragged off on 55 minutes soon after Liverpool went 2-0 down. He left the pitch with a wry smile, hardly the attitude you want from someone who’s been linked with a move away so regularly, and to Madrid of all places too.

He was handed a 3/10 match rating by GOAL but didn’t leave the pitch as their worst performer.

Liverpool’s worst performer against Nottingham Forest

While Liverpool’s defence will come under the microscope of scrutiny for their failings against Sean Dyche’s men, their forward line is also not pulling up any trees either.

For a side that spent over £200m on Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, far far more should be expected.

Wirtz did not start the game at Anfield on Saturday but Isak did. Fans, however, must be wishing he hadn’t.

Signed in a British record £125m deal over the summer, it has been a wretched first few months in Liverpool red for the Swede.

He has played nine times now and only has one goal, a strike in the Carabao Cup, to show for his efforts.

Since then, Isak has failed to score. He’s without a goal in five league games and all four of his Premier League starts have ended in defeat.

The nadir of his Anfield career so far came this weekend when he was anonymous against Forest. GOAL handed the striker a dismal 2/10 rating, writing that he ‘hardly had a kick’ and ‘wasn’t even close to breaking his duck here’.

As a result, he was subbed off for Federico Chiesa after 68 minutes and simply cannot be in the starting lineup for their Champions League clash in midweek.

Minutes played

68

Touches

14

Accurate passes

5/7 (71%)

Key passes

1

Successful dribbles

0

Shots

1

Shots on target

0

Ground duels won

0

Aerial duels won

0

While Hugo Ekitike has barely been in good form himself, Liverpool’s best displays in 2025/26 have come with their fellow summer signing in the team.

Isak’s display this time around was so anonymous that he had just 14 touches of the football. In the process, he gave possession away seven times. For every two touches of the ball, he was squandering possession.

Usually so technically secure and comfortable in possession, it’s a huge worry that he can’t even get himself into the action.

To compound the striker’s woes, he lost every single one of his duels and managed just one shot which wasn’t even on target.

For any new signing to be in such a desperate rut would be a concern, but when he’s the most expensive player in Premier League history, it only heightens the issue. He is paying the price for a lack of pre-season and it’s desperately hurting Liverpool’s season.

Perhaps they should have stuck with Ekitike after all.