Liverpool's Manager Offers No Excuses and Pledges to Plot Way From Malaise
Liverpool's head coach declared he needed to “examine my own performance” following the Reds endured a sixth loss in 7 Premier League matches at home to Nottingham Forest and insisted he would discover a solution from the champions’ slump.
Nottingham Forest, in the relegation zone prior to the match, delivered the largest win at Anfield in their club records as Liverpool fell to an eighth defeat in 11 matches in every tournament. The most expensive domestic acquisition, Alexander Isak, was again unnoticeable and Liverpool contended the defender's opener ought to have been ruled out for comparable grounds to Virgil van Dijk’s chalked-off goal versus City prior to the international break. But Slot conceded the buck rested with him and made no excuses.
“No one wishes to listen to me now talking about officiating calls if you lose 3-0 in your own stadium to Nottingham Forest,” stated the Reds' boss. “I should examine myself first and my team, but it does show you how a goal can alter the flow of a game. Before I was just waiting for us to net a strike. Later we barely generated any chances.
“Naturally there is a path forward, especially with the quality players we have. Regardless if you win or are beaten when you reflect you are always thinking: ‘Where can we improve, in what aspects can we adjust?’ but that is different from doubting your abilities.
“I want to emphasise I am responsible for the current defeats. You are answerable when you are winning but also liable when you are losing. I can not provide sufficient reasons for us to have the outcomes we have. That is far from acceptable and I am responsible for that.”
Liverpool’s performance unravelled as Slot made several offensive changes when chasing the match. “It was the identical away at Nottingham Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted Ibou [Ibrahima Konaté] off and put on [Diogo] Jota and he found the net straight away to make it 1-1. At that time it was courageous, currently it’s probably unwise.”
Liverpool last lost back-to-back at Anfield Premier League fixtures by Nottingham Forest in 1963. The last time they lost consecutive top-flight games by a three-goal margin was in 1965.
Slot said: “It was very bad. Competing on home soil, losing 3-0 no matter which opponent you face is a very, very bad outcome. Surprising if you look at the opening 30 minutes of the match. I did not witness us creating so much in the opening half-hour maybe the entire campaign, and the initial occasion they entered in our box they scored.
“It did not happen at City, but in every other game we have been the dominant team and were able to create chances. Recently it is almost constantly that we miss our opportunities and the ones we concede find the net.”