Liverpool's Manager Offers No Excuses and Pledges to Plot Route Out of Slump

Arne Slot stated he needed to “examine my own performance” after Liverpool suffered a sixth loss in seven Premier League games on their own turf to Forest and affirmed he would find a way out of the champions’ poor run.

Nottingham Forest, in the relegation zone before kick off, delivered the biggest win at Liverpool's stadium in their club records as the Merseyside club slipped to an eighth loss in 11 fixtures in every tournament. The most expensive domestic acquisition, the Swedish striker, was again anonymous and Liverpool contended Murillo’s first goal ought to have been ruled out for similar reasons to the captain's disallowed effort against Manchester City prior to the international break. But the manager conceded the responsibility stopped with him and offered no alibis.

“Nobody wishes to hear me now speaking about officiating calls if you lose 3-0 at home to Forest,” stated the Liverpool head coach. “I should examine my own role first and my team, but it does show you how a goal can alter the flow of a match. Earlier I was just waiting for us to score a strike. Later we barely created anything.

“Naturally there is a path forward, particularly with the quality players we have. No matter if you triumph or are beaten when you look back you are always thinking: ‘In which areas can we improve, where can we adjust?’ but that is something else from questioning your abilities.

“I wish to stress I am accountable for the present defeats. You are answerable when you are winning but also responsible when you are losing. I can never come up with sufficient excuses for us to have the results we have. That is not acceptable and I am responsible for that.”

The team's display fell apart as Slot introduced several offensive changes when pursuing the game. “It was the same on the road at Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted the French defender out and brought on [Diogo] Jota and he scored straight away to make it 1-1. At that time it was brave, now it’s likely stupid.”

Liverpool last lost back-to-back home Premier League games by Forest in 1963. The most recent occasion they suffered consecutive top-flight matches by a three-goal scoreline was in 1965.

The manager said: “It was very bad. Playing at home, losing 3-0 no matter which opponent you encounter is a very, very bad outcome. Surprising if you look at the opening 30 minutes of the game. I haven’t seen us creating so much in the initial 30 minutes perhaps the entire campaign, and the first time they arrived in our box they scored.

“It wasn’t against Manchester City, but in every other fixture we have been the dominant team and were able to create chances. Lately it is almost constantly that we miss our opportunities and the attempts we concede go in.”

Theodore Tate
Theodore Tate

Elara Vance is a seasoned luxury goods analyst with over a decade of experience evaluating high-end products and lifestyle trends across Europe.