Arne Slot knows where blame lies as Liverpool boss vents his frustration
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Arne Slot Knows Where Blame Lies as Liverpool Boss Vents Frustration
In a candid post-match assessment, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot took full responsibility for his team's disappointing form, admitting they "can only blame" themselves following a late 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park—their first loss of the season.
Slot acknowledged that Palace "deserved" the victory, highlighting Liverpool's poor defending in the closing stages. "One of our players ran out because he wanted to play a counter-attack, which was of no use because time was up, so it was only about defending," he said. "One player was too offensively minded in that moment, which led to them scoring the winner." This marked the second loss to Palace this season, with Liverpool winning just one and drawing another in four encounters. Slot noted Palace created four strong chances in the first half and could have led by two or three goals, while Liverpool improved post-interval but conceded from a set-piece.
Broadening his frustration, Slot described Liverpool's slump as "ridiculous" and "unbelievable." The reigning Premier League champions, now languishing in 12th place after a 3-0 home thrashing by Nottingham Forest—their sixth loss in seven league games—have conceded 20 goals in 12 matches, far exceeding last season's tally at this stage. Set-piece concessions have been particularly damning for a club of their stature.
"I take the responsibility and feel guilty for it," Slot stated, emphasizing open team discussions on defensive lapses. "The biggest one is the goals we concede... The amount of goals from set-pieces is close to ridiculous." Players echoed his sentiments, stressing collective accountability to the manager and fans amid calls to stick together and reclaim form.
Slot praised aspects like second-half chance creation but vented over Ibrahima Konate's "horrendous" first-half display. With Liverpool in the bottom half for the first time in over a decade, the pressure mounts on Slot to reverse this alarming trend.
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