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Virgil van Dijk has issued a scathing assessment of the club's woeful title defence, admitting the reigning champions are in disarray and letting down manager Arne Slot while questioning whether all squad members is owning up for the current downturn.

The Dutch defender could not contain his anger after the weekend's heavy loss at Anfield by Nottingham Forest, a result that saw the Reds in the lower section of the top-flight standings with a deficit in goals. The club's chair was present at Anfield to witness Liverpool’s latest loss in recent outings, their eighth setback in eleven fixtures across all competitions, and a display that unravelled against a opponent that started the day in the drop zone.

Poor Second Half and Set-Piece Woes

Van Dijk labeled Liverpool’s opening after halftime as “unacceptable” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as Murillo gave the visitors the advantage. Forest’s opener was the ninth goal Liverpool have conceded from a set piece in the Premier League this season.

“We had a great build-up to the match but in a fixture you are facing reality and the facts are we gave away a set piece in the opening period and a terrible goal at the start of the second half,” said the defender. “As a team, we're certainly failing the manager, but we’ve let ourselves down as well. You look at yourself first and then you help each other, you help each other get out of this mess because at the moment it is a difficult situation – that’s just a fact.

Captain’s Challenge: Take Responsibility

Van Dijk usually speaks the media after a match as part of his duties as Liverpool captain. Saturday was different, however. He spoke was much louder – audible enough that any teammate in the Anfield tunnel could listen in – and he expressed visible fury while urging the dressing room to respond. “Anger is justified,” he emphasized. “The key point for me is that everyone has to be accountable.” When questioned whether that is happening, he replied: “It's unclear. But you have to do that. That's crucial I want the players to do. It’s not easy during tough periods but we have to do it if we want to get out of this.”

Summer Signings and Team Problems

Liverpool invested almost £450m to strengthen a title-winning squad in the off-season but have gone backwards, with several high-profile signings failing to make an impact so far. Van Dijk maintained that Liverpool’s issues extend past the recent additions. “It's difficult for everyone,” he said. “My expectation is for everyone to be answerable on the field. This is necessary in order to push each other, to make each other better. If a teammate presses, you have to follow the effort. It’s basic things but it’s not happening enough.”

Appeal to Stick Together

The Dutchman continued: “In the current term we lack any consistency, we allow excessive scores, we are being out-fought and all share the blame for it and I hope everyone sees that. We have to accept duty to reverse the situation and it is easy to assign blame but you have to do it together. Past successes were collective and won the league and all contributed, and when you go through a tough time you have to stick together and avoid blaming others.

“Show character and face the toughness and go again, again and again because if you want to give up then you are at the wrong place in my eyes, because this club has been enduring numerous challenges over recent seasons and we’ve always come out of it. But it doesn’t mean it is straightforward, it’s exhausting but there is no other way.”

Looking Ahead

The upcoming match in the domestic league is a visit to London Stadium next Sunday, after the Champions League fixture of PSV in the European competition. He said: “The next game is another opportunity so what am I going to do, dwell on the loss? No, I’m going to go home and analyze how we can improve results and hopefully that is what everyone is doing as well.”