Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool LIVE: Premier League team news and line-ups from top of table clash

Forward Salah and defenders Van Dijk and Alexander-Arnold are all currently on contracts that will run out this summer.

Klopp, who stepped down as Reds manager at the end of last season and is now Red Bull’s head of global soccer, told a press conference in Salzburg on Tuesday: “He (Salah) is the biggest striker Liverpool had in modern times.

“Fantastic player, fantastic human being, outstanding athlete, best ambassador (Egypt) could have. Fantastic really in very much all departments. So I hope he will stay at Liverpool.

“From my point of view I would love all three of them to extend their contracts, but I don’t know. They didn’t tell me.”

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot now views their only Premier League defeat of the season differently having seen how Nottingham Forest have defied expectations.

At the time, the 1-0 loss in September was considered a major shock as a team who finished 17th last season registered their first win at Anfield since 1969.

However, four months on and Nuno Espirito Santo’s Forest are level on points with second-placed Arsenal, having won more matches than any other team except leaders Liverpool.

“For us to lose on that day was, for me, hard to take,” said Slot ahead of Tuesday’s trip to the City Ground.

“Now, looking back at it and seeing where they are in the league, it has not been such a shock result as I thought it was back then.”

Forest welcome Slot’s Premier League leaders to the City Ground on Tuesday for a crunch match which could determine whether they are in a title race.

Nuno has guided his side to six-successive victories in the league and they would move to within three points of Liverpool with victory on Tuesday night.

A settled Liverpool side sees Dominik Szoboszlai preferred to Curtis Jones in midfield.

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szobszlai, Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Diaz, Gakpo.

Captain Ryan Yates returns to the starting Nottingham Forest side.

Nottingham Forest XI: Sels; Aina, Murillo, Milenkovic, Williams; Yates, Anderson; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood.

Just ten minutes now until team news emerges from the City Ground. Is there a surprise in store?

Forest have propelled themselves to joint second in the table after a run of six successive victories and they are being spoken about as possible title contenders.

Whether that could really happen is likely to hinge on the outcome of their match with Arne Slot’s league leaders on Tuesday.

Victory over Arne Slot’s title favourites would further prove the hosts’ candidacy for a European place (or perhaps more) after an outstanding first half of the season under Nuno Espirito Santo.

While they do still have a game in hand in the Premier League, Slot’s side have shown vulnerability in the last 10 days with a draw against Manchester United followed by a Carabao Cup semi-final first leg defeat to Tottenham.

Forest, by contrast, have been in excellent recent form with their top four charge showing few signs of slowing.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the fixture.

Over the last week, Arne Slot’s staff have been trying to look for clues for likely situations that no one in the Premier League has yet been able to see coming. That is the moment when Anthony Elanga, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Morgan Gibbs-White get into position to suddenly break.

It has confounded the majority of the Premier League this season, given Nottingham Forest have beaten 12 of the competition’s 19 clubs, including Manchester United and Liverpool themselves. There’s been a glorious throwback in the value of the counterattack, one that has come out of nowhere.

Darwin Nunez is suspended for Liverpool. Arne Slot remains without Joe Gomez but has no fresh injury concerns.

Predicted Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Diaz, Gakpo.