Liverpool 'not good enough' says Arne Slot after shock loss against Nottingham Forest

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Arne Slot expressed his disappointment after experiencing his inaugural loss as Liverpool's manager on Saturday, stating that the team's performance was inadequate.

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Unsatisfactory. That was Arne Slot's assessment following his first loss as the manager of Liverpool on Saturday.

A surprising 1-0 defeat at home against Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League marked the end of Slot's flawless run since taking over from Jurgen Klopp at Anfield after last season.

"We controlled the ball for most of the match, but we only created three or four decent opportunities, which isn't nearly enough given our level of possession," the Dutch coach commented, indicating that his team should be performing better against opponents like Nottingham Forest.

"Losing a home game is always a blow, especially when you're up against a team that’s unpredictable. Although they might surprise everyone and make a run for Champions League spots, they usually don’t finish in the top 10. Therefore, losing to them is quite disappointing."

Slot achieved victory in his first three matches as manager, highlighted by an impressive 3-0 win over Manchester United prior to the international break.

However, that streak ended when Callum Hudson-Odoi scored in the 72nd minute with a beautifully curled shot from the edge of the penalty area that went past goalkeeper Alisson.

Liverpool’s loss allowed Manchester City to stand as the sole team with a perfect record in the league, following their 2-1 victory over Brentford.

Manchester United secured a 3-0 victory over Southampton, bringing their two-game losing streak to an end.

Christopher Nkunku found the net just seven minutes after coming off the bench, securing a 1-0 victory for Chelsea over Bournemouth.

Erling Haaland reached the milestone of 99 goals for City after netting a pair of goals in the match against Brentford.

The Norwegian's second goal came after Yoane Wissa put Brentford in the lead just 22 seconds into the match.

Haaland netted his 98th and 99th goals in his 103rd match for City across all competitions. He came very close to achieving his third straight hat trick, having already scored three goals against Ipswich and West Ham, but narrowly missed when his shot hit the post.

"He's performed exceptionally well. I would say he's the best he's ever been, but we have only had four matches this season," said City manager Pep Guardiola.

Haaland, a contender for the Ballon d'Or, has scored nine goals in just four league matches. Since his transfer from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 for $63 million, he has led the league in scoring during both of his seasons with City.

Haaland scored his first goal just 19 minutes into the match, leveling the score after Wissa had given the visitors an unexpected lead, leaving the Etihad Stadium crowd in shock. Haaland managed to turn and fire a shot past goalkeeper Mark Flekken, aided by a slight deflection off Ethan Pinnock.

He overpowered Pinnock, shrugging off the defender and sprinting ahead to score his second goal in the 32nd minute.

In the 81st minute, he was just a hair’s breadth from scoring as his shot hit the post after getting past the goalkeeper.

Marcus Rashford ended a 12-match goal drought as United triumphed over Southampton.

Rashford increased Manchester United's advantage at Saint Mary's following Matthijs de Ligt's debut goal for the team. Alejandro Garnacho, who came on as a substitute, added a third goal in the sixth minute of added time.

The victory followed two consecutive losses for United.

Rashford hadn't found the back of the net since March when he scored in Manchester United's FA Cup quarterfinal victory against Liverpool. In the 41st minute against Southampton, he elegantly bent a shot from the edge of the box, giving Erik ten Hag's squad a 2-0 lead.

Ten Hag mentioned that this could be a pivotal moment for the striker.

"Every forward dreams of making it onto the goal-scoring chart. Once the first goal is scored, it often leads to more. It's similar to a ketchup bottle; once it starts pouring out, it tends to keep flowing," he explained.

De Ligt, who transferred to United from Bayern Munich during the summer break, scored with a header after receiving a cross from Bruno Fernandes in the 35th minute.

The outcome might have changed if Cameron Archer had scored a penalty for Southampton in the 33rd minute. However, his shot was denied by goalkeeper Andre Onana.

Southampton, recently promoted, found themselves down to ten players when Jack Stephens received a red card in the 79th minute for a dangerous tackle on Garnacho.

Chelsea had a bit of fortune on their side before Nkunku found the net in the 86th minute. Bournemouth came close to scoring twice, hitting the woodwork, and they also had a penalty saved by Robert Sanchez in the first half.

Marcus Tavernier struck the crossbar in the fourth minute, while Evanilson had a penalty saved in the 38th minute.

In the latter part of the game, Ryan Christie had another shot that struck the post.

Nkunku came on in the 79th minute and quickly scored the decisive goal, assisted by his teammate Jadon Sancho, who also entered the game as a substitute.

After losing three games in a row at the start of the league, Everton seemed poised to secure their first victory as they were ahead of Aston Villa by 2-0.

A pair of goals from Dwight McNeil and Dominic Calvert-Lewin put Sean Dyche's squad ahead, but Ollie Watkins responded with two goals of his own, leveling the match.

Jhon Duran finalized Villa's comeback by scoring in the 76th minute, clinching a 3-2 victory and leaving Everton stuck at the bottom of the standings as the only team in the premier league without any points.

Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a penalty in injury time to help Crystal Palace secure a 2-2 tie with Leicester.

Leicester was ahead 2-0 at Selhurst Park thanks to goals from Jamie Vardy and Stephy Mavididi.

However, Mateta ignited Crystal Palace's comeback by scoring just a minute after Mavididi increased Leicester's lead, finding the net in the 47th minute.

Conor Coady committed a foul on Ismaili Sarr inside the penalty area just before the end of the match, and Mateta calmly scored from the spot.

West Ham waited until the very end to secure a point in their 1-1 tie against Fulham.

Danny Ings found the back of the net in the fifth minute of stoppage time, just when it seemed Raul Jimenez’s goal would secure a victory for Fulham.

Brighton’s head coach, Fabian Hurzeler, who earned Manager of the Month honors for August, expressed his frustration after his team played to a scoreless draw against Ipswich at home.

You can find James Robson on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson.

James Robson, Associated Press