Slot Provides No Excuses and Pledges to Plot Way Out of Malaise
Arne Slot stated he had to “look at myself” after the Reds endured a sixth loss in seven Premier League matches at home against Nottingham Forest and insisted he would find a way from the champions’ poor run.
Nottingham Forest, in the relegation zone prior to the match, delivered the largest win at Anfield in their history as the Merseyside club fell to an eighth defeat in eleven matches in every tournament. The most expensive domestic acquisition, Alexander Isak, was once more anonymous and the home side contended Murillo’s first goal ought to have been disallowed for similar reasons to Virgil van Dijk’s chalked-off goal versus Manchester City prior to the national team pause. But Slot conceded the responsibility stopped with him and made no excuses.
“Nobody wishes to listen to me now speaking about officiating calls if you lose 3-0 at home to Forest,” said the Reds' boss. “I should look at my own role initially and my team, but it demonstrates you how a goal can change the momentum of a game. Before I was just hoping for us to net a goal. Later we hardly generated anything.
“Of course there is a path forward, especially with the talented players we have. Regardless if you win or are beaten when you look back you are always thinking: ‘Where can we do better, where can we make changes?’ but that is different from doubting your abilities.
“I wish to emphasise I am accountable for the current defeats. You are responsible when you are victorious but also liable when you are losing. I can not provide enough reasons for us to have the outcomes we have. That is far from acceptable and I am to blame for that.”
The team's performance unravelled as the coach introduced several offensive changes when chasing the game. “It was the same on the road at Nottingham Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted Ibou [Ibrahima Konaté] off and put on the Portuguese forward and he found the net straight away to equalize at 1-1. Then it was brave, currently it’s likely stupid.”
Liverpool last lost back-to-back home league games by Forest in the sixties. The most recent occasion they suffered consecutive league matches by a 3-0 scoreline was in the mid-60s.
The manager commented: “It was extremely poor. Competing at home, losing 3-0 no matter which opponent you face is a terrible outcome. Surprising if you consider the first half-hour of the match. I did not witness us producing so many chances in the opening 30 minutes perhaps the entire season, and the initial occasion they entered in our box they scored.
“It did not happen at City, but in all other game we have been the dominant side and were able to generate opportunities. Recently it is nearly constantly that we fail to convert our chances and the attempts we concede go in.”