Liverpool's Manager Provides Zero Justifications and Vows to Find Way Out of Slump
Arne Slot stated he needed to “examine my own performance” following the Reds suffered a sixth loss in seven Premier League matches on their own turf against Forest and insisted he would discover a solution out of the title holders' slump.
Forest, fighting against the drop before kick off, produced the biggest win at Anfield in their history as Liverpool slipped to an 8th loss in eleven matches in every tournament. The British record signing, the Swedish striker, was again unnoticeable and the home side argued the defender's opener should have been disallowed for similar reasons to the captain's disallowed effort against Manchester City prior to the national team pause. But the manager conceded the buck stopped with him and made no excuses.
“Nobody wants to hear me now speaking about officiating calls if you lose 3-0 at home to Forest,” said the Reds' boss. “I ought to examine myself first and my team, but it demonstrates you how a goal can change the flow of a match. Before I was just hoping for us to score a goal. Later we hardly generated anything.
“Naturally there is a way out, especially with the talented footballers 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 yourself.
“I want to emphasise I am accountable for the present losses. You are answerable when you are victorious but also liable when you are defeated. I can never come up with sufficient excuses for us to have the outcomes we have. That is not acceptable and I am responsible for that.”
The team's display fell apart as Slot made multiple offensive changes when pursuing the game. “It was the same away at Nottingham Forest the previous campaign,” he remarked. “I took the French defender out and put on the Portuguese forward and he scored immediately to equalize at 1-1. Then it was courageous, now it’s probably unwise.”
Liverpool last lost back-to-back at Anfield league games against Nottingham Forest in 1963. The last time they suffered consecutive league games by a three-goal scoreline was in 1965.
The manager said: “It was extremely poor. Competing on home soil, conceding 3-0 regardless of which team you encounter is a terrible outcome. Unexpected if you look at the opening 30 minutes of the match. I did not witness us creating so much in the initial 30 minutes perhaps the whole campaign, and the initial occasion they entered in our box they scored.
“It did not happen at City, but in all other fixture we have been the controlling side and were capable to create chances. Recently it is almost constantly that we miss our opportunities and the ones we allow find the net.”