Jürgen Klopp had conceded his scant knowledge of Nottingham extended to its association with Robin Hood and, until Diogo Jota poked in the winning goal 12 minutes from time to propel Liverpool into a FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City, he was in jeopardy of being on the wrong end of an upset that would have provided an unwanted memory.
Forest proved courageous and stubborn, leading Klopp to make a quadruple substitution midway through a stale second half, replenishing his entire midfield, and the hosts should have taken the lead, Philip Zinckernagel wasting a golden opportunity. As the game reached a barnstorming climax, Ryan Yates missed a chance to take the game to extra time.
Liverpool will now face City twice in a week, the potential Premier League title decider at the Etihad on 10 April being followed the next weekend by a Wembley semi-final.
Steve Cooper made a low-key entrance a few minutes before kick-off, strolling out of the tunnel and raising his right hand to acknowledge the adoring Forest support before taking a seat in the home dugout. Cooper, who spent five years coaching Liverpool’s academy, has revitalised Forest since inheriting a team that were bottom of the Championship.
He could be forgiven for wanting to take it all in. Giant tifos were unfurled in the Trent End and even Cooper applauded the rousing pre-match rendition of Forest’s version of Mull of Kintyre. “Our desire is always to be here,” read a graphic stretched across the lower tier. At the opposite end, in a pocket of the Bridgford Stand adjacent to the away fans, there was a poignant tribute to those who lost their lives in the Hillsborough disaster. “97 Never Forgotten” read a banner that covered 97 vacant seats.
There was a sense of great anticipation around the City Ground before the first meeting between these sides since 1999, Forest’s last season in the top flight. That day Pierre van Hooijdonk scored a last-minute equaliser and Steven Gerrard, in his debut season, stepped off the bench.
The Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, attended his first game in more than two years and saw a breathless first 45 minutes. Forest supporters gasped as Brennan Johnson made the first inroads down the left flank and the volume increased further when Zinckernagel pinched the ball inside the Liverpool penalty area. His cross was deflected across the six-yard box and fell to the lively Joe Lolley but his cutback was cleared by Naby Keïta, who was arguably the weakest link.
Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold were absent through injury, while Sadio Mané was rested. Roberto Firmino squandered Liverpool’s best first-half opening, guilty of overcomplicating things after being slipped in on goal. Firmino tried to lob Ethan Horvath but the goalkeeper read the situation.
Kostas Tsimikas went close with a swerving shot from 25 yards and Joe Gomez, effective on the opposite flank, sent a flying shot over on the verge of the interval.
Fabinho, one of four to keep his place, pulled a shot wide after a flat corner and the Forest captain, Joe Worrall, made an expert sliding tackle on Jota just as the Liverpool forward appeared set to take aim.
Jordan Henderson and Luis Díaz were among those to arrive off the bench with 64 minutes gone, a compliment to Forest’s temerity.
“All respect to Steve and Nottingham Forest,” Klopp said. “It was a top, top performance by them: really passionate, really well organised but in cup competitions we all know [to expect] that. There is only one reason to be a part of it: to go to the next round and we did that, in an atmosphere where everything was prepared to give us a knock but because we were prepared for a fight, we came through and I’m really happy.”
Manchester City v Liverpool
Chelsea v Crystal Palace
The ties to be played at Wembley on 16/17 April.
A couple of minutes after Zinckernagel prodded wide having read Johnson’s teasing ball into the box, Jota converted Tsimikas’s floating cross. “The game was defined in two minutes, where we had a really good chance and didn’t take it, and they created one, and did,” Cooper said. “There is probably a feeling of ‘what might have been’.”
Yates had a penalty shout when he skipped past Alisson and his leg caught the goalkeeper’s outstretched arm. The referee did not give a spot kick and was backed up by VAR. Yates then should have repeated Van Hooijdonk’s 1999 feat with a late equaliser but failed to direct his header past Alisson after an electric burst forward by Johnson. Instead Jota’s strike provided a cruel reminder of Liverpool’s clinical edge.
That crucial, telling touch would ultimately prove the difference to set up a mouth-watering semi-final and maintain their hopes of completing an unprecedented quadruple this season. The smoke of red flares thrown on to the pitch in celebration left the ground in a haze.
“We knew before the game that City would be the opponent and we wanted to go to the final anyway,” Klopp said. “I don’t think we are the dream draw for anybody, but it will be a tough one. We have to make sure it will be tough for City as well. There are a lot of games to play before then.”
