Liverpool paid a heavy price for their win against Nottingham Forest.

(NLĐO) – Liverpool paid a heavy price for their 1-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at home in the 27th round of the English Premier League late on February 22nd (Hanoi time).

"The Reds" left City Ground with 3 points thanks to a stoppage-time goal from midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, but the joy was short-lived as Florian Wirtz suffered an injury just before the match.

The 22-year-old German midfielder was initially named in the starting lineup by coach Arne Slot. However, he experienced fitness issues during the warm-up and was forced to withdraw from the matchday squad.

Midfielder Florian Wirtz suffered an injury during the warm-up. Photo: X @SkySportsPL

The German midfielder was initially named in the starting lineup when Liverpool visited Nottingham Forest. Photo: Shutterstock Editorial

This incident forced Liverpool to make a last-minute lineup change, with Curtis Jones being chosen as a replacement.

This is seen as a major blow for Liverpool, especially considering that midfielder Wirtz plays a key role in the team's style of play.

Joining Anfield from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee of £116.5 million, midfielder Wirtz had a slow start but quickly proved his worth.

To date, the German star has been involved in 14 goals (scoring and assisting) in 35 appearances across all competitions for Liverpool.

Commentator Jamie Carragher admitted that midfielder Wirtz's injury was a major blow to the reigning champions. "He's been the link between Liverpool's play for the past few months. Losing Wirtz is a huge blow to the team," the former Liverpool legend stressed.

"Curtis Jones is a central midfielder, not a number 10 who plays between the lines. Liverpool will certainly miss Wirtz," he added.

Sharing the same view, former striker Darren Bent assessed midfielder Wirtz as one of the most outstanding players in the Premier League recently and his absence could significantly impact Liverpool's ambitions.

Notably, this is only the second Premier League match this season that midfielder Wirtz has missed, and both times were against Nottingham Forest. In their previous encounter, Liverpool suffered a heavy 0-3 defeat at Anfield.

Despite paying a heavy price, the victory against Nottingham Forest in round 27 gives Liverpool hope of finishing in the top four, thus securing qualification for the Champions League next season.

Slot's team is currently ranked 6th despite having 45 points, the same as Chelsea and Man United - who will be playing away against Everton on the morning of February 24th.

Midfielder Aleix Mac Allister became Liverpool's hero when he scored in injury time after a header from defender Virgil van Dijk. Photo: PA

Source: https://nld.com.vn/liverpool-tra-gia-dat-cho-tran-thang-nottingham-forest-196260223053909455.htm