Carragher Tears Into Liverpool Over Forest Heist: "One of the Biggest Robberies"

Liverpool scraped past Nottingham Forest with a dramatic late winner on Sunday, but their performance left plenty to be desired—and Jamie Carragher was having none of it.

Alexis Mac Allister's goal in the depths of stoppage time secured a 1-0 triumph at the City Ground, yet the manner of the victory prompted scathing criticism from the former Reds defender. Carragher wasted no time branding the result "one of the biggest robberies" he'd witnessed in the Premier League all season.

The match unfolded with Liverpool's preparations disrupted before kick-off when Florian Wirtz suffered an injury during warm-up, forcing Curtis Jones into the starting XI. From there, things went downhill quickly. The opening 45 minutes were dire, producing just 0.06 expected goals as Liverpool's rhythm never materialised. Forest, making their first league appearance under new manager Vitor Pereira, remained composed and organised throughout, rarely coming under genuine pressure.

What left Carragher particularly baffled was Arne Slot's decision to keep his starting XI unchanged at the interval. "Very surprised there are no changes," the pundit remarked. "That's up there with one of the worst first halves I've seen from Liverpool this season. There have been some horror shows, but that is right at the top of the list."

Mohamed Salah's evening proved forgettable before his withdrawal late in the second half. The Egyptian departed the pitch visibly frustrated, shaking his head, before later being spotted smiling on the bench—a reaction that did not escape the notice of onlookers. His form this season has remained inconsistent since returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, where he'd previously aired his grievances about being dropped for three consecutive matches.

Carragher's assessment of Salah was withering: "Substitute Rio Ngumoha did more in 15 minutes than Salah and Gakpo did before that. He changed the game and needs to be starting games." The pundit also highlighted Liverpool's uncanny knack for snatching late winners, noting there's "no one better in getting last-minute winners in the Premier League."

Jones, too, came under scrutiny for his technical deficiencies. "Curtis Jones is always taking too many touches; he needs to be sharper. That's been an issue for his entire Liverpool career. He's always wanting too much time on the ball."

Liverpool had earlier thought they'd found a breakthrough when Ola Aina's clearance deflected off Mac Allister, but the effort was correctly ruled out for handball. The actual winner came from Mac Allister reacting quickest to Virgil van Dijk's knockdown following Dominik Szoboszlai's cross deep into added time.

The victory leaves Liverpool level on points with Chelsea and Manchester United, keeping their Champions League ambitions alive despite a performance that left much to be desired.