Liverpool's Manager Provides No Excuses and Vows to Plot Route From Slump

Liverpool's head coach stated he had to “examine my own performance” after the Reds suffered a 6th loss in seven English top-flight matches on their own turf against Nottingham Forest and affirmed he would find a way from the title holders' slump.

Forest, in the relegation zone before kick off, produced the biggest win at Anfield in their history as the Merseyside club fell to an 8th loss in eleven matches in every tournament. The most expensive domestic acquisition, the Swedish striker, was again unnoticeable and the home side contended the defender's first goal should have been ruled out for similar reasons to Virgil van Dijk’s disallowed effort versus Manchester City prior to the national team pause. But Slot admitted the responsibility stopped with him and made no excuses.

“Nobody wants to listen to me now speaking about refereeing decisions if you are defeated 3-0 at home to Nottingham Forest,” said the Liverpool head coach. “I should look at myself initially and my squad, but it does show you how a goal can alter the flow of a match. Before I was just hoping for us to net a goal. Later we barely created any chances.

“Of course there is a path forward, especially with the talented players we have. No matter if you triumph or lose when you look back you are always thinking: ‘Where can we do better, where can we make changes?’ but that is something else from doubting your abilities.

“I want to emphasise I am accountable for the present defeats. You are answerable when you are victorious 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 performance unravelled as Slot introduced multiple offensive substitutions when pursuing the game. “It was the identical on the road at Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted the French defender off and put on the Portuguese forward and he scored immediately to make it 1-1. Then it was brave, now it’s likely stupid.”

Liverpool previously were defeated in two successive at Anfield Premier League fixtures against Nottingham Forest in the sixties. The most recent occasion they lost back-to-back top-flight games by a three-goal scoreline was in 1965.

The manager commented: “It was extremely poor. Competing at home, conceding 3-0 regardless of which team you face is a terrible outcome. Surprising if you consider the opening 30 minutes of the match. I did not witness us creating so many chances in the opening half-hour perhaps the entire season, and the first time they arrived in our box they scored.

“It did not happen against Manchester City, but in every other fixture we have been the controlling side and were capable to generate chances. Recently it is almost constantly that we miss our chances and the attempts we concede find the net.”

Wendy Clark
Wendy Clark

A seasoned travel writer and cultural anthropologist with over a decade of experience exploring remote destinations and documenting unique traditions.