Konate’s cartwheel perfectly captured Liverpool’s topsy-turvy afternoon at Nottingham Forest

Nottingham, England — Ibou Konate’s spontaneous cartwheel will never appear on a Premier League scoresheet, yet the image is already the defining snapshot of Liverpool’s 1-0 victory at the City Ground. The France defender’s exuberant tumble, triggered by what he believed was a late breakthrough from Alexis Mac Allister, lasted only as long as one replay cycle before VAR intervened to disallow the effort for handball. The abrupt mood swing, from jubilation to disbelief, mirrored a match in which Jürgen Klopp’s side rarely found fluency but still emerged with three precious points.

Konate had watched Mac Allister’s shot loop in via a deflection and, arms aloft, launched into a gymnastic celebration more commonly reserved for cup-final winners. Within seconds, referee Michael Oliver’s review overturned the goal, leaving the 26-year-old centre-back mid-pitch and momentarily bewildered. “It hit my back and my elbow,” Mac Allister said afterwards. “I understand the rule, but if you understand football, that goal should have stood.” Former Liverpool striker John Aldridge went further, branding the decision “corrupt” on social media, illustrating how a single VAR intervention can dominate post-match discourse even in victory.

The episode proved emblematic of a contest Liverpool never truly controlled. Florian Wirtz’s withdrawal during the warm-up forced a reshuffle, and Forest repeatedly pinned the visitors back, forcing Konate and his defensive colleagues to repel a succession of set pieces. Statistics from Sofascore underline the defender’s influence: he stepped out to intercept attacks before they matured, carried the ball through congested midfield zones and helped stabilise possession when the Reds’ passing lanes narrowed.

Ultimately, Liverpool required stoppage-time heroics to secure the win. Virgil van Dijk’s header was parried into Mac Allister’s path and, at the second attempt, the Argentine steered home the decisive goal. This time there was no cartwheel—only a collective exhalation of relief audible above the away end’s roar.

Klopp’s men will bank the points and turn their attention to forthcoming fixtures, yet Konate’s fleeting somersault is likely to outlive the match highlights. In one impulsive motion, he encapsulated the emotional whiplash of an afternoon when Liverpool thought the job was done, only to discover one final twist still awaited.