Liverpool’s Premier League title defense is surely over now after Arne Slot’s side suffered its sixth loss in seven games on Saturday, 3-0 to Nottingham Forest at Anfield.
LIVERPOOL 3-0 NOTTINGHAM FOREST — Video highlights & recap
Below is the latest Arne reaction, speaking as the Reds could finish the weekend as many as 11 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Arne Slot reaction — What did Liverpool boss say after sixth loss in seven games?
On the mood at the club: “It should be like this. No matter what kind of run of form you’re in, if you lose 3-0 at home against… a team that did really well today, but it’s not really our standards that we are losing a game at home 3-0. We should all be very disappointed but we also know that in a few days, Champions League is coming up.”
“The first half-hour, I think the players did what we were hoping for — played with a lot of energy, created enough chances to go a goal up — then we conceded a set piece, and that changed the momentum and the game completely. Afterwards, we struggled a lot to find openings to find chances that we were able to find in the first half-hour. I tried to make a couple of changes, a couple of adjustments, but that didn’t work out the way I wanted. A big disappointment. When things go well, things don’t go well, it is always my responsibility.”
On confidence, belief and nervousness: “I don’t feel this, and I didn’t see this in the first half-hour. But what you do see is that after we go one-nil down, we do struggle — struggle in the sense that we don’t create as many chances. We try to pump them up, to give them the information they need to start the second half well, and immediately after the start we conceded the two-nil. That is again a big blow for us and a big boost of confidence for them. The players kept on trying — I cannot blame them on that — but it was very difficult for us to find an opening, and when we found an opening they blocked every single shot we had.”
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk: “It’s a very, very difficult situation at the moment”
On Liverpool’s run of results: “We concede too many easy goals. The first half-hour, we were good — created good opportunities — [then] they scored from a set piece, that you can ask if [someone] was in front of Alisson [blocking his view in an offside position], but it counted so we’re 1-0 down. I think, overall, we were just not good in terms of the battles, the challenges, the second-ball fight — too rushed. So, it’s a very, very difficult situation at the moment. It was a tough day.”
On his responsibility as captain: “It’s definitely a problem. Like you said, I take responsibility and everyone in the team — not only the stars — have to take responsibility as well, because football is a team game, we all do it together and we need everyone at their best. To win games, you have to take responsibility, that’s what I’ve mentioned [to the team], now we have to digest this, take it on the chin and work harder. I’ve been saying it quite a lot this season and it’s not working out, but we have to keep going.”
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“Obviously everyone is disappointed, like they should be, because losing at home to Nottingham Forest is, in my eyes, very bad. That’s the least I can say about it. The goals we conceded were far too easy. … I’ve been at this club for such a long time now, and we’ve been through ups and downs already. We will bounce back, but these things don’t happen overnight.”