Arne Slot reiterated his claim that Nottingham Forest are Premier League title contenders after Diogo Jota equalized with his first touch of the ball in an entertaining draw. Slot has predicted Forest will compete with Liverpool for the league title if they keep key players fit. Liverpool are in second place, six points clear of Forest, but also have a game in hand against Nuno Espírito Santo’s side.

Forest are the only team to have beaten Liverpool at Anfield this league season in September. Asked about Forest’s chances of lifting the title, Slot said: “I don’t think they’re up there because of luck. It was very tough and difficult for every team to play against them. They’ve had some difficult away games already, away at (Manchester) United, away at (Manchester) City and they played us twice.

“It shows you that this is a team that can compete at the top of the league. I think most of their players have been available to them all season so far. I almost always see the same lineup, and that’s a quality of their coaching staff. If they can keep the same players on the pitch, I don’t see any reason for them to give up a lot of points because they are difficult to play against.”

Midway through the second half, the Liverpool coach brought in left-backs Kostas Tsimikas and Jota in place of Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konaté, and the pair immediately combined from a corner to equal Chris Wood’s first-half strike.

Slot admitted he was pleasantly surprised by the super-sub nature of his decision.

“We used an attacker (Jota) instead of a defender (Konaté) just to play even more attacking football than us because we needed a goal, goals,” he said. “When I brought them in I didn’t have in mind to score from a set piece. But Jota can score a goal and Kostas is good in set pieces.”

Jota’s header canceled out Wood’s 13th goal of the season in all competitions, a fine first strike after he collected Anthony Elanga’s pass. Liverpool’s goal was the first conceded in six games by Forest, who have the second-worst defense in the Premier League.

“The way we concede goals, we usually do a lot better,” Wood said. “The way we conceded goals leaves a sour taste. They are a good team and have shown that all season. We had to stand up and be counted. It shows we’ve come a long way, but we still have a long way to go to win these games.”

Asked whether Forest’s players, who have won six of their last seven league games, have spoken about a title challenge, the striker replied: “No, there is no such thing. “We just talk about pushing on, every week, every week “To get better this month and see where it takes us.”