Liverpool's Manager Offers No Excuses and Vows to Find Way From Malaise
Arne Slot declared he had to “look at myself” after Liverpool suffered a sixth loss in 7 Premier League games on their own turf against Nottingham Forest and insisted he would find a way from the champions’ poor run.
Forest, fighting against the drop prior to the match, delivered the largest victory at Liverpool's stadium in their history as Liverpool fell to an eighth loss in 11 matches in all competitions. The British record signing, Alexander Isak, was once more anonymous and the home side contended Murillo’s first goal should have been ruled out for comparable grounds to the captain's chalked-off goal versus Manchester City prior to the international break. But the manager conceded the responsibility rested with him and offered no alibis.
“Nobody wishes to listen to me now speaking about refereeing decisions if you are defeated 3-0 in your own stadium to Nottingham Forest,” stated the Reds' boss. “I should look at my own role first and my team, but it does show you how a score can alter the flow of a game. Earlier I was just hoping for us to score a goal. Afterwards we hardly generated any chances.
“Of course there is a path forward, especially with the talented footballers we have. No matter if you win or lose when you reflect you are always thinking: ‘In which areas can we do better, in what aspects can we adjust?’ but that is different from questioning your abilities.
“I want to emphasise I am responsible for the present defeats. You are responsible when you are winning but also responsible when you are losing. I can never come up with sufficient reasons for us to have the results we have. That is far from acceptable and I am responsible for that.”
Liverpool’s display unravelled as the coach introduced multiple attacking substitutions when pursuing the game. “It was the same away at Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted the French defender out and brought on the Portuguese forward and he scored immediately to equalize at 1-1. At that time it was courageous, currently it’s probably unwise.”
Liverpool last lost back-to-back at Anfield league fixtures by Nottingham Forest in the sixties. The last time they suffered consecutive league matches by a three-goal margin was in the mid-60s.
The manager commented: “It was very bad. Competing on home soil, conceding 3-0 regardless of which opponent you face is a very, very bad outcome. Unexpected if you consider the opening 30 minutes of the game. I did not witness us producing so much in the initial 30 minutes perhaps the entire campaign, and the first time they arrived in our penalty area they scored.
“It wasn’t at City, but in every other game we have been the controlling side and were able to generate chances. Lately it is nearly constantly that we miss our opportunities and the attempts we allow go in.”