In a season of lamentable injuries and unwanted absences, Jurgen Klopp has felt few as keenly as Diogo Jota.
A hamstring injury that was aggravated in one of the early training sessions of Liverpool's pre-season tour of Thailand in July ruined his summer and kept him sidelined until early September. Jota's spell of availability would only last around six weeks before his World Cup dream with Portugal was wrecked by a serious calf problem picked up in the closing stages of the 1-0 win over Manchester City on October 16.
Officially, Jota has been fit and ready for action since February but having spent around six months on the treatment table across the course of those two issues, the No.20 has been unable to deliver the kind of contribution that saw him smash in a career-high 21 goals last term for the Reds. Until now, it seems.
PLAYER RATINGS: Diogo Jota and Alisson good against Nottingham Forest
ANALYSIS: Liverpool finally have their 'game-breaker' back in huge boost for Klopp
After a two-goal salvo in the 6-1 demolition of Leeds on Monday night, the quiet, unassuming forward added another couple for the week's tally as Liverpool came through a difficult game against Nottingham Forest at Anfield with a nervy and hard-earned 3-2 victory.
How Klopp will have wished to be able to select a peak Jota at other junctures during this season, particularly throughout a horrible January when he was also without Roberto Firmino and Luis Diaz. Defeats to Brighton, Brentford and Wolves might have been different stories had the 'lad from Portugal' been raring to go.
His evident resurgence might yet have come too late in the day to salvage Champions League hopes but his clinically-taken double has at least helped to close the gap on fourth-place Newcastle to six points ahead of their visit from Tottenham on Sunday afternoon.
In a season where lazy punditry has led to suggestions that Sadio Mane has been a major miss at Liverpool, the truth is Klopp has been left to rue the absence of this version of Jota even more. How different might this season look had he been free of calf and hamstring woes?
In a first half devoid of real incident - one that was played with a lack of intensity that is usually reserved for the pre-season schedule - Liverpool struggled to create anything in the way of clear-cut chances in open play.
Forest's inability to defend balls into the box offered the Reds the best route to goal but Jota spurned a glorious chance for his third of the week from Trent Alexander-Arnold's teasing free-kick after Virgil van Dijk had seen a header turned over the bar by Keylor Navas. The visitors did have Neco Williams to thank earlier in the half when he cleared off the line from Cody Gakpo's header.
Set-piece deliveries aside, it was all too slow and ponderous with little craft to prise open a stubborn and jam-packed Forest rearguard, despite Alexander-Arnold trying his best from the new central midfield role he takes up when in possession.
As the first half threatened they would, Liverpool eventually opened the scoring after the restart via set-piece as Jota headed in after Fabinho had kept the chance alive from another dangerous Reds corner.
Williams fired Forest level moments later thanks to a deflection off Andy Robertson that wrong-footed Alisson Becker in the Liverpool goal. The Wales international opted not to celebrate against the club who helped make him a Premier League player.
If Jota's first showcased his poacher's instinct, his second was top-quality as he took down Robertson's delivery into the box on his chest before striking past Navas with his left foot. "He's the lad from Portugal, better than Figo don't you know," roared the Kop as they dusted off the catchiest terrace ditty of last season. It's one that has unfortunately not been aired anywhere near as regularly this time out.
To their credit, Forest refused to accept their fate and continued to cause their own problems with the long-throw tactic. Morgan Gibbs-White smashed a low volley past Alisson after a launch into the box was only half cleared by Van Dijk.
Liverpool started to look as susceptible to Forest's long throws just as much as their visitors were to dead-ball deliveries and it felt like the result would hinge on whose Achilles heel had the biggest target on it.
It would prove to be Forest as Mohamed Salah poked home wonderfully from another ball into the penalty area, this time from the wand on the end of Alexander-Arnold's right leg. Another assist for him in his new role. It was the Egyptian's 183rd for the Reds, which takes him level with the iconic Robbie Fowler and just three behind Steven Gerrard, who was suitably impressed as he watched on from the directors' box.
The Reds made hard work of it, but back-to-back victories suddenly have them sniffing around the top four once more. It may yet prove fruitless but there are still 21 points left up for grabs. They couldn't, could they?
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