Virgil van Dijk has criticised Liverpool’s alarming downturn, admitting the champions are “in a mess” after a 3–0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest left them in the bottom half of the Premier League.
The Liverpool captain said the team are letting down manager Arne Slot and questioned whether every player is taking responsibility for the slump, which has seen six losses in their last seven league games. Van Dijk described the start of the second half against Forest as “unacceptable”, saying panic set in after Murillo’s goal and pointing to continuing problems from set pieces.
Speaking angrily after the match, he challenged his teammates to respond, insisting accountability is lacking. “Everyone has to take responsibility,” he said, adding that pressing, organisation and basic standards are falling short.
Despite spending close to £450m over the summer, new signings including Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong have struggled to make an impact. However, Van Dijk stressed the problems go beyond the new players and are shared by the whole squad.
He called for unity rather than finger-pointing and urged players to show resilience, warning that giving up is not an option at a club like Liverpool. With games against PSV and West Ham coming up, Van Dijk said the focus must be on finding solutions immediately rather than dwelling on the crisis.
