Liverpool have been hit with home truths from inside their own dressing room after a humiliating defeat at the hands of Manchester City
Liverpool’s season has gone from bad to worse(Image: Simon Stacpoole/Offside via Getty Images)
Liverpool won’t have time to lick their wounds after being battered 4-0 by Manchester City with their Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain on the horizon. The Reds lost in dominant fashion in their FA Cup quarter-final clash at the Etihad Stadium, with Erling Haaland netting a hat-trick and Antoine Semenyo also scoring.
The defeat was Liverpool’s 15th in all competitions this season, the most the club have suffered in a single campaign since 2014/2015 when they lost 18 matches under Brendan Rodgers.
The manner of their embarrassment in Manchester has caused Virgil van Dijk to hand heavy accusations towards his team-mates. Mirror Football also takes a look at a message sent to Mohamed Salah in the wake of his impending exit as we delve into the biggest stories coming out of Anfield.
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Virgil van Dijk points finger at players
The biggest indictment any team can face is accusations of giving up – and that’s exactly what Van Dijk levelled at his team-mates. In a season of numerous horrific performances and results, the Reds’ 4-0 drubbing on Saturday may have taken the cake in terms of the biggest embarrassment of their campaign.
To make matters worse, Van Djik admitted his side gave up during the match in a statement that could have severe repercussions for the rest of the club’s season and perhaps the future of Slot.
READ MORE: ‘I’ve spoken to Mo Salah since Liverpool exit announcement – Arne Slot is behind it’READ MORE: Dominik Szoboszlai slammed by Liverpool fans for behaviour after Man City thrashing
The Dutchman said: “I’ve been there already many times this season when I’ve had hope and then we couldn’t build on performances. Our second half, the intensity we didn’t match, the challenges we didn’t win, it was tough.
“To lose then 4-0 is tough. Am I sick of repeating myself? 100%, of course. I can understand the fans’ frustration as well. Obviously you come out of the dressing room [after half-time] with the right intentions to score and make it 2-1 and change the game.
“But the opposite happened and then to come back from 3-0 is obviously very difficult. Also you shouldn’t give up, and that’s maybe what happened at a certain point. It’s mentally very tough at the moment, I must say.”
Mohamed Salah sent message
Mohamed Salah endured a particularly horrendous afternoon at the Etihad Stadium. On top of what was a dire performance, the Egyptian missed his second penalty in a row in what currently looks like a sad end to an illustrious Liverpool career.
Mo Salah’s Liverpool career will come to a close at the end of the season(Image: Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)
The 33-year-old lined up against his former Reds coach Pep Lijnders on Saturday, with the Dutchman taking charge of City in the absence of Pep Guardiola due to his touchline ban.
Lijnders, 43, who worked with Salah for much of his career at Anfield, had a first-hand account of the greatness Salah embodied and admitted he hopes the winger can receive a goodbye fitting of his stature in Merseyside.
At full-time, he said: “I hope so. He had seven or eight years at Liverpool wining the biggest trophies you can win in style. He will get all that (respect). It’s nice for all the players who were in that generation of team [to get that respect]. They all deserve that.”
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