NOTTINGHAM, England: Nottingham Forest produced a shock to beat Liverpool 1-0 in the Premier League on Saturday.
The last-place team at the start of the day secured only their second win of the season in the game at the City Ground.
Taiwo Awoniyi struck in the 55th-minute to end Liverpool’s mini-revival, which saw them beat Rangers, Manchester City and West Ham in their previous three games.
Awoniyi was on the books at Anfield for six years without ever playing for the first team, but he produced the decisive moment to lift Forest off the foot of the table.
“To score against Liverpool is a day I will never forget,” he told BBC Sport.
“I will always to be grateful to Liverpool for scouting me from Nigeria and scoring against them is amazing.”
The win eases the pressure on Forest manager Steve Cooper, who also used to coach at Liverpool.
“This is not the end, this has got to be a part of the start,” Cooper said. “We get back in on Monday and work even harder. We’ve been on a difficult run but, I told the boys, I’ve not seen them hide, shy away or sulk. I’ve seen the opposite. That’s given me reassurance.”
Forest took the lead 10 minutes into the second half when a free-kick found Steve Cook on the right-hand side. His cross was struck against the post by Ryan Yates, but Awoniyi was on hand to turn the rebound into an empty net.
Morgan Gibbs-White then saw another effort blocked by James Milner, which would have doubled the home team’s lead.
Liverpool’s fight back saw Forest goalkeeper Dean Henderson palm away a Trent Alexander-Arnold header in the final 10 minutes.
In return, Alisson denied Yates late on before Henderson stopped a powerful header from Virgil van Dijk to secure the famous win.
Liverpool were without the injured Darwin Nunez and Thiago Alcantara, who was unwell.
“The performance I can kind of explain, the result not to be honest,” Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp told BT Sport. “I never saw a game where one team has four or five no-brainers from a set piece where we have to finish it off.
“The way they defend we were perfectly prepared for that. We had to put the game to bed to be perfectly honest.”
Nottingham Forest shocks Liverpool in 1-0 win
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Nottingham Forest shocks Liverpool in 1-0 win
- The last-place team at the start of the day secured only their second win of the season in the game at the City Ground
- Taiwo Awoniyi struck in the 55th-minute to end Liverpool's mini-revival
Elvira holds his nerve to win 2026 Dubai Invitational
- The Spaniard finished top after five players had shared the lead on the final day at Dubai Creek Resort
DUBAI: A nerveless display during a roller-coaster final round saw Nacho Elvira come out on top to claim his third DP World Tour title at the 2026 Dubai Invitational.
No fewer than five players shared the lead on a chaotic Sunday at Dubai Creek Resort, where overnight leader Elvira cruised into a three-shot lead following a third birdie of the day at the seventh.
He left the door ajar when finishing his front nine with successive bogeys as Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Daniel Hillier and Marcus Armitage joined the Spaniard at the summit at nine under down the final stretch.
Lowry made his move with a birdie at the 15th, only to double bogey the last and spectacularly fall out of contention.
Hillier was the clubhouse leader at nine under, but Elvira carded his first birdie of the back nine at the 17th to earn a one-shot lead down the last and calmly rolled a final par for a brilliant victory.
“It means the world,” the 38-year-old said. “If you told me on Tuesday that I’d be winning this tournament I’d have never believed you.
“It’s a dream come true, especially having the family here. I’ve always dreamed to have my kids walking up to me with a win and anything that happens after this, nothing compares to this.
“I knew at some point it was going to be difficult, especially with the great players playing in front of me. I somehow managed to make a par on 10, managed somehow to make a par on 11 and I guess I calmed down a little after this and stayed patient.
“To be honest with you, I wasn’t nervous until the very last putt — the one-footer I had for the win. I knew what I needed to do, I knew I needed to be patient. I think there are so many positives from this week and I couldn’t be happier.”
Elvira opened with a birdie to maintain his two-shot overnight lead at nine under, but it was reduced to nothing when Lowry birdied three of his first four holes.
The Spaniard became the first man to reach double figures with a birdie at the fourth and when he birdied the seventh, he led by three at 11 under.
Lowry had bogeyed the latter hole to slip back to eight under alongside Armitage, who had birdied the first and seventh to reach that mark, before Elvira twitched at the top.
Bogeys at the eighth and ninth saw him drop to nine under and he was joined by Armitage after the Englishman’s birdie at the tenth.
McIlroy seemed out of contention after two dropped shots and gain during his opening seven holes, but he surged into co-leadership after five straight birdies from the ninth.
Hillier, who had eagled the 13th, joined the party at nine under after his fourth birdie of the day at the 15th.
Lowry made it a five-way tie for the lead with a birdie at the 13th before Armitage dropped back one with a bogey at the 14th.
The Irishman jumped ahead on his own with a 27-foot birdie putt at the 15th before Hillier set the clubhouse target of nine under following a flawless 65.
The world No. 26 was inches from increasing his lead to two shots at his 16th, while McIlroy almost holed out from a greenside bunker to birdie the last, but two-putted to fall back to eight under.
Elvira still had the final two holes to play and piled the pressure on Lowry with birdie at the penultimate hole to rejoin the lead at ten under.
Just as the Spaniard drained his seven-foot birdie putt, Lowry’s bunker shot flew the final green and into the water to card a stunning double bogey. That meant Elvira only needed a par on the 72nd hole for victory and he showed nerves of steel to do just that from one foot.
Elvira was handed the trophy by tournament host Abdullah Al Naboodah, chairman of Al-Naboodah Investments and European Tour Group non-executive board member.
“Congratulations to Nacho Elvira on an outstanding performance and well-earned victory,” he said.
“The caliber of golf from both our professionals and amateurs has been remarkable. The pro-am format is what makes the Dubai Invitational special, and it remains an honor to host the world’s best here. Thank you to everyone who took part and to our global partners DP World and Rolex, along with our tournament partners Discovery Land Company, Dubai Basketball, Gulfstream and Silverlake.
“We also extend our thanks to the Wasl and World of Hyatt for providing the unparalleled backdrop of the Dubai Creek Golf Club and special thanks to the Dubai Sports Council and the Emirates Golf Federation for their continued support for the tournament and golf in the region. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in 2028."
Frenchman Julien Guerrier bounced back from a double bogey at the second with seven birdies to sit in a share of third at eight under alongside Spain’s David Puig, McIlroy and Lowry.
Armitage double-bogeyed the last to join Matt Wallace and Dane Thorbjørn Olesen at six under, while France’s Antoine Rozner and South African duo Thriston Lawrence and Dylan Frittelli were one shot further back to wrap up the top 10.
