Liverpool struggled to find their tempo in the opening 45 minutes, with Nottingham Forest players performing admirably in their individual battles to limit the hosts’ considerable attacking prowess.
Most notably, Àlex Moreno nullified Mohamed Salah down the right-wing while Ryan Yates and Alexis Mac Allister continually went head-to-head in a bruising midfield battle.
The first half was not without its scares for the away side though.
Luis Díaz crashed a strike against the post after excellently keeping the ball alive as Yates failed to shepherd the ball out for a goal kick. Yet, it was another, more spectacular blunder that nearly undid all of Forest’s hard work.
Goalkeeper Matz Sels failed to catch Diaz’s harmless looping header, with the Belgian stopper grateful for his own quick reactions, as he dramatically grasped the ball before it could trickle over the goal line.
With no noticeable improvement after the HT break, Arne Slot went looking for solutions from his bench.
A triple substitution on the hour mark saw the introduction of Conor Bradley, Cody Gakpo and Darwin Núñez, but it was a change from Nuno Espírito Santo that provided instant success.
Anthony Elanga found the fresh legs of Hudson-Odoi, who cut inside and curled an exquisite strike beyond a helpless Alisson.
The first goal conceded of the Slot era stunned players and fans alike, with Forest enjoying the better of the opportunities in the closing stages, as Alisson was forced to deny Elanga late on.
An expected Liverpool onslaught in the final moments never materialised, as Forest comfortably hung on for a long overdue Anfield victory.
The result also remains Forest remain unbeaten in the top flight this term, although they remain a point behind Liverpool in the table.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Àlex Moreno (Nottingham Forest)
