Slot Provides No Excuses and Vows to Find Way Out of Slump

Arne Slot stated he needed to “look at myself” following Liverpool endured a sixth defeat in seven Premier League games at home against Nottingham Forest and insisted he would find a solution out of the title holders' poor run.

Forest, fighting against the drop prior to the match, produced the largest victory at Liverpool's stadium in their history as the Merseyside club fell to an 8th defeat in 11 fixtures in all competitions. The British record signing, the Swedish striker, was again anonymous and the home side argued Murillo’s opener should have been ruled out for comparable grounds to the captain's disallowed effort versus Manchester City before the national team pause. But Slot admitted the responsibility rested with him and made no excuses.

“No one wants to listen to me now talking about officiating calls if you lose 3-0 at home to Nottingham Forest,” said the Liverpool head coach. “I should look at myself initially and my team, but it does show you how a score can alter the flow of a match. Earlier I was just hoping for us to score a goal. Later we barely generated any chances.

“Naturally there is a way out, especially with the quality players we have. No matter if you triumph or lose when you reflect you are always considering: ‘In which areas can we improve, where can we make changes?’ but that is different from questioning your abilities.

“I wish to stress I am accountable for the current defeats. You are answerable when you are victorious but also liable when you are defeated. I can never come up with enough excuses for us to have the outcomes we have. That is not good enough and I am to blame for that.”

The team's performance unravelled as Slot made several attacking changes when chasing the game. “It was the same on the road at Nottingham Forest last season,” he said. “I substituted the French defender out and put on the Portuguese forward and he found the net immediately to equalize at 1-1. At that time it was brave, currently it’s probably stupid.”

Liverpool previously were defeated in two successive at Anfield Premier League games by Nottingham Forest in 1963. The most recent occasion they suffered back-to-back league games by a 3-0 margin was in the mid-60s.

Slot commented: “It was very bad. Competing on home soil, losing 3-0 regardless of which opponent you encounter is a very, very bad outcome. Unexpected if you look at the first half-hour of the game. I haven’t seen us producing so much in the opening half-hour perhaps the whole season, and the first time they entered in our box they found the back of the net.

“It did not happen at City, but in every other fixture we have been the dominant team and were able to create opportunities. Lately it is almost consistently that we fail to convert our opportunities and the attempts we concede find the net.”

Katherine Armstrong
Katherine Armstrong

A tech strategist with over a decade of experience in digital transformation and AI-driven solutions, passionate about bridging technology and business.