When Alisson Becker is hoping to return and push Giorgi Mamardashvili back to the Liverpool bench

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Liverpool’s alarming dip in form this season has coincided with first-choice goalkeeper Alisson Becker being unavailable for selection.

Alisson was between the sticks for the first defeat of the campaign for the Reds – away at Crystal Palace on September 27th – and also started against Galatasaray three days later.

But having suffered a hamstring injury while playing in Istanbul, the Brazilian has not been seen since.

Giorgi Mamardashvili has stepped up in Alisson‘s place, and by and large the big Georgian has done a good job.

However, it has also become clear that Mamardashvili is not quite on the level of Liverpool‘s No. 1. With the rest of the team badly struggling, the Reds have obviously missed Alisson.

It will be a relief to see the security he brings return, and Liverpool fans have been given some good news about when that could be.

Alisson Becker hopeful of Nottingham Forest comeback

While not the fault of Mamardashvili at all, it is a fact that Liverpool have lost four of the six matches he has started since Alisson limped off in Istanbul.

They may still have tasted those defeats had the Brazil international been fit, but Alisson has been the difference for Liverpool before, and they would likely have stood a better chance had he not been injured.

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Next up, the Reds face Nottingham Forest at Anfield in the hope of bringing some confidence to the upcoming festive period.

And according to The Daily Mail, they could line up against Forest with Alisson back in the side.

They claim that the goalkeeper is ‘hopeful’ of coming back into the starting XI against Sean Dyche’s team.

Meanwhile, an update is also given on the status of Jeremie Frimpong, who has missed Liverpool’s last five matches.

Unfortunately, Frimpong is reportedly set to be out of action for around four more weeks.

Alisson impact cannot be underestimated

Mamardashvili has done a fine job of replacing Alisson over the past six weeks, and the 25-year-old clearly has a big future with Liverpool.

However, there is nobody quite like the Reds’ first-choice goalkeeper. He is a class apart.

A top goalie can make the difference between winning and losing at times, and there will remain a nagging feeling amongst supporters that things would never have been quite this bad had Alisson stayed fit.

He was brilliant during his last Premier League appearance – the defeat against Palace – and his return cannot come soon enough.

Mamardashvili is one for the next five years or more with Liverpool, but right now, Alisson is still the main man. The Reds will have a better chance of getting back to winning ways if he starts against Forest.