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Virgil van Dijk has delivered a blunt evaluation of Liverpool's woeful title defence, admitting the title holders are in disarray and letting down manager Arne Slot while questioning whether every player is taking responsibility for the current downturn.

The Dutch defender could not contain his frustration after the weekend's heavy loss at Anfield by Nottingham Forest, a result that saw the Reds in the bottom half of the Premier League table with a deficit in goals. Tom Werner was in attendance to observe Liverpool’s sixth defeat in seven league games, their eighth loss in eleven fixtures across every tournament, and a display that unravelled against a opponent that began the match in the drop zone.

Poor Second Half and Defensive Lapses

Van Dijk labeled Liverpool’s opening after halftime as “unacceptable” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as Murillo gave the visitors the lead. The first goal was the ninth goal Liverpool have allowed from dead-ball situations in the current campaign.

“There was a great build-up to the match but in a game you are dealing with reality and the facts are we conceded a set piece in the first half and a poor concession at the beginning after the break,” stated Van Dijk. “We are certainly letting him down, but we’ve let ourselves down as well. You look at yourself first and then you help each other, you work together to escape of this mess because at the present time it is a mess – that's the reality.

Van Dijk’s Demands: Take Responsibility

Van Dijk typically addresses the media after a match as part of his role as Liverpool captain. Saturday was different, however. He spoke was more forceful – audible enough that any player in the Anfield tunnel could hear him – and he shook with anger while urging the squad to react. “You should be angry,” he emphasized. “The main thing for me is that each individual has to take responsibility.” When questioned whether that is happening, he replied: “I don’t know. But you have to do that. It’s the main thing I want the players to do. It’s not easy during difficult times but we have to do it if we want to get out of this.”

Summer Signings and Broader Issues

Liverpool invested almost £450m to strengthen a championship-winning team in the off-season but have regressed, with new arrivals struggling to contribute so far. The captain maintained that Liverpool’s issues extend past the new recruits. “It’s tough for all involved,” he said. “My expectation is for each player to be answerable on the pitch. We have to do that in order to motivate one another, to improve collectively. If a teammate presses, you have to follow the press. These are fundamentals but they're lacking enough.”

Call for Unity

Van Dijk continued: “This season we don’t have any consistency, we allow excessive scores, we are losing battles and everyone is responsible for it and I hope everyone sees that. It's vital to take responsibility to turn this around and tempting to point fingers but you have to do it together. Past successes were collective and claimed the title and everyone was part of it, and when you go through a challenging phase you have to stick together and avoid blaming others.

“You have to be a man and face the toughness and persist, again and again because surrendering is not an option then you are at the wrong place in my view, because Liverpool has been enduring many adversity over recent seasons and we’ve consistently emerged of it. But it doesn’t mean it is easy, it’s tiring but there is only one path forward.”

Next Fixtures

The upcoming match in the Premier League is a trip to West Ham next weekend, after the Champions League fixture of PSV in the European competition. Van Dijk commented: “Wednesday is another opportunity so what am I going to do, go home and cry? No, I'll return and analyze how we can improve results and I trust that is what everyone is doing as well.”