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Virgil van Dijk has issued a scathing assessment of Liverpool's woeful championship campaign, admitting the title holders are in disarray and letting down manager Arne Slot while questioning whether every player is owning up for the current downturn.

Van Dijk could not contain his anger after the weekend's heavy loss at Anfield by Forest, a result that left Liverpool in the bottom half of the top-flight standings with a negative goal difference. The club's chair was in attendance to witness 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 started the day in the relegation zone.

Poor Second Half and Set-Piece Woes

Van Dijk labeled Liverpool’s start to the second half as “not good enough” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as the Forest player gave the visitors the lead. Forest’s opener was the ninth concession Liverpool have allowed from dead-ball situations in the Premier League this season.

“We had a productive build-up to the match but in a game you are facing facts and the truth is we conceded a free-kick in the opening period and a poor concession at the start of the second half,” said the defender. “As a team, we're certainly failing the manager, but we’ve disappointed ourselves as well. Start with self-reflection and then you support teammates, you work together to escape of this crisis because at the moment it is a mess – that’s just a fact.

Van Dijk’s Demands: Step Up

Van Dijk typically addresses the press after a game as part of his duties as team leader. Saturday was different, however. His voice was much louder – so loud that any player in the stadium corridors could hear him – and he expressed visible fury while urging the squad to respond. “Anger is justified,” he emphasized. “The key point for me is that each individual has to take responsibility.” When questioned whether that is happening, Van Dijk answered: “I don’t know. But you have to do that. That's crucial I expect the boys to do. It's challenging during tough periods but we must act if we aim to recover of this.”

Summer Signings and Team Problems

The Merseyside club invested almost £450m to strengthen a title-winning squad in the summer but have gone backwards, with several high-profile signings struggling to contribute so far. Van Dijk insisted that Liverpool’s problems go beyond the recent additions. “It's difficult for everyone,” 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. When someone is pressing, you must join the press. It’s basic things but they're lacking enough.”

Appeal to Stick Together

The Dutchman continued: “In the current term we lack any consistency, we allow far too many goals, we are losing battles and everyone is responsible for it and I trust everyone sees that. It's vital to take responsibility to turn this around and tempting to point fingers but unity is essential. Past successes were collective and won the league and all contributed, and during a tough time you must remain united and not point fingers.

“You have to be a man and face the toughness and persist, again and again because if you want to give up then you are at the wrong place in my view, 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 straightforward, it’s exhausting but there is only one path forward.”

Next Fixtures

The upcoming match in the domestic league is a trip to West Ham next weekend, after the Champions League fixture of the Dutch side in the Champions League. He said: “Wednesday is another opportunity so what am I going to do, go home and cry? No, I’m going to go home and try to think how we can turn this around and hopefully that is the collective focus as well.”