'No mean feat': Alan Shearer says Nottingham Forest star did something that's really difficult vs Liverpool
09/17/2024 03:35 AM
Nottingham Forest defied the odds to beat Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday and win at the famous stadium in the league for the first time since 1969.
The current crop of Forest stars weren’t even born the last time the Reds went to Anfield and won, whilst manager Nuno Espirito Santo would have been five!
Forest look to be a different beast this season though. The Reds remain unbeaten with two wins and two draws from the opening four matches of the campaign.
The Reds need to stay ground but things do feel different this season. Clearly, a full pre-season for the group has paid dividends and things are starting to click.
Following the performance on Saturday, a number of pundits and experts have been raving about the Forest display and it really was a win for the ages at Anfield.
Alan Shearer raves about Nottingham Forest star Ola Aina
After Troy Deeney has omitted the Forest performance from his mind it would seem for his BBC Sport Team of the Week, all eyes were on the official Premier League compilation produced by Alan Shearer.
The Match of the Day pundit was very kind about the Forest display on Saturday’s broadcast and even shut Danny Murphy down when he mentioned that Liverpool lost because of how many players went on international duty.
Shearer named a host of players from Forest in his Team of the Week, with Aina one of the players in his thoughts for some credit after he stifled the threat of Luis Diaz.
He said on the official Premier League website: “Part of a fine defensive display from Forest, Aina kept the in-form Luis Diaz quiet, which is no mean feat.”
Aina is one of the best Forest signings in recent memory
There are still a small section of supporters who continue to question Evangelos Marinakis. Everything he does comes under fire and it’s about time the recruitment talk was knocked on the head.
Okay, there have been mistakes since Forest won promotion back to the Premier League. However, over the last few transfer windows, the club has learned the error of their ways and become more meticulous in the market.
| Position | Team | PlayedMP | WonW | DrawnD | LostL | ForGF | AgainstGA | DiffGD | PointsPts |
| 5 | Aston VillaAston Villa | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 9 |
| 6 | BrightonBrighton | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 7 | Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 8 | ChelseaChelsea | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 7 |
| 9 | BrentfordBrentford | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
There is no finer example of this than Aina. The versatile defender was the first summer addition during the 2023 window and signed on a free transfer from Serie A outfit Torino.
Aina has struggled with some injury problems over the years but he’s largely been dependable and reliable, nailing down the left-back slot during his time at Forest so far.
That could change this year. With Alex Moreno now signing on loan from Aston Villa, it looks as though Aina might move over to right-back and it’s great that Forest have options to call upon.
