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Virgil van Dijk has delivered a blunt assessment of Liverpool's woeful championship campaign, confessing the reigning champions are in disarray and letting down head coach Slot while doubting whether all squad members is taking responsibility for the team’s slump.

Van Dijk could not contain his anger after the weekend's 3-0 home defeat by Forest, a result that left Liverpool in the lower section of the top-flight standings with a negative goal difference. The club's chair was present at Anfield to observe Liverpool’s latest loss in seven league games, their eighth loss in 11 matches across every tournament, and a display that fell apart against a Forest side that started the day in the drop zone.

Poor Second Half and Set-Piece Woes

The captain described Liverpool’s start to the second half as “unacceptable” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as Murillo gave Sean Dyche’s team the advantage. The first goal was the ninth concession Liverpool have conceded from a set piece in the current campaign.

“There was a great build-up to the match but in a game you are dealing with facts and the truth is we gave away a set piece in the first half and a terrible goal at the beginning after the break,” stated the defender. “As a team, we're 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 moment it is a mess – that's the reality.

Van Dijk’s Demands: Take Responsibility

Van Dijk typically addresses the media after a game as part of his role as team leader. This time was distinct, however. His voice was more forceful – so loud that any player in the stadium corridors could listen in – and he shook with anger while urging the squad to react. “Anger is justified,” he emphasized. “The main thing for me is that each individual has to take responsibility.” When questioned whether this is occurring, Van Dijk replied: “It's unclear. But you have to do that. That's crucial I want the players to do. It’s not easy during difficult times but we must act if we want to get out of this.”

Squad Investment and Team Problems

Liverpool invested almost £450m to replenish a title-winning squad in the off-season but have gone backwards, with new arrivals struggling to contribute so far. The captain insisted that Liverpool’s issues go beyond the new recruits. “It's difficult for all involved,” he said. “What I want is for each player to be answerable on the field. We have to do that in order to motivate one another, to improve collectively. If a teammate presses, 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 don’t have any consistency, we concede far too many goals, we are losing battles and all share the blame for it and I trust everyone sees that. It's vital to take responsibility to reverse the situation and it is easy to point fingers but you have to do it together. We have been through it together and won the league and everyone was part of it, and when you go through a challenging phase you must remain united and avoid blaming others.

“Show character and confront the hardship and go again, again and again because if you want to give up then you are in the wrong environment in my eyes, because this club has been going through numerous challenges over recent seasons and we’ve always come out of it. But it doesn’t mean it is easy, it’s tiring but there is only one path forward.”

Next Fixtures

Next up in the Premier League is a visit to London Stadium next weekend, after the Champions League fixture of PSV in the European competition. He said: “Wednesday is another game so what am I going to do, dwell on the loss? Certainly not, I’m going to go home and analyze how we can turn this around and hopefully that is the collective focus as well.”