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Virgil van Dijk has delivered a blunt evaluation of Liverpool's woeful title defence, confessing the title holders are in a mess and letting down head coach Slot while questioning whether every player is owning up for the team’s slump.

The Dutch defender struggled to hold back his frustration after the weekend's heavy loss at Anfield by Forest, a result that left Liverpool in the bottom half of the Premier League table with a deficit in goals. Tom Werner was present at Anfield to observe Liverpool’s sixth defeat in recent outings, their eighth setback in eleven fixtures across all competitions, and a performance that fell apart against a opponent that began the match in the relegation zone.

Poor Second Half and Set-Piece Woes

The captain described Liverpool’s opening after halftime as “not good enough” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as Murillo gave Sean Dyche’s team the advantage. The first goal was the ninth goal Liverpool have allowed from dead-ball situations in the Premier League this season.

“There was a productive three or four days’ preparation but in a game you are facing reality and the facts are we gave away a free-kick in the first half and a terrible goal at the beginning after the break,” said the defender. “We are definitely letting him down, but we’ve disappointed ourselves as well. You look at yourself first and then you support teammates, you help each other get out of this crisis because at the present time it is a mess – that's the reality.

Van Dijk’s Demands: Take Responsibility

Van Dijk usually speaks the press after a game as part of his duties as team leader. Saturday was different, however. He spoke was more forceful – audible enough that any teammate in the Anfield tunnel could hear him – and he shook with anger while urging the dressing room to react. “You should be angry,” he emphasized. “The key point for me is that each individual has to be accountable.” Asked whether that is happening, Van Dijk replied: “It's unclear. But you have to do that. It’s the main thing I expect the boys to do. It’s not easy during difficult times but we must act if we aim to recover of this.”

Summer Signings and Team Problems

Liverpool spent almost £450 million to strengthen a championship-winning team in the off-season but have regressed, with several high-profile signings struggling to contribute so far. The captain insisted that Liverpool’s issues extend past the new recruits. “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 improve collectively. When someone is pressing, you must join the press. These are fundamentals but they're lacking enough.”

Appeal to Stick Together

Van Dijk added: “In the current term we lack any steady form, we allow far too many goals, we are losing battles and everyone is responsible for it and I hope this is recognized. It's vital to take responsibility to turn this around and tempting to assign blame but unity is essential. Past successes were collective and won the league and everyone was part of it, and when you go through a challenging phase you have to stick together and not point fingers.

“Show character and confront the hardship and persist, repeatedly because if you want to give up then you are in the wrong environment in my view, because Liverpool has been enduring many adversity over those years and we’ve consistently emerged of it. However, that doesn't imply it is easy, it’s tiring but there is no other way.”

Next Fixtures

Next up in the Premier League is a visit to London Stadium next Sunday, after the Champions League fixture of the Dutch side in the Champions League. Van Dijk commented: “Wednesday is another opportunity so what am I going to do, dwell on the loss? No, I’m going to return and analyze how we can turn this around and I trust that is the collective focus as well.”