Liverpool boss Arne Slot has come under pressure for the Reds' form, while the Dutchman's squad is also under scrutiny for their performances since winning the Premier League
Arne Slot and Dominik Szoboszlai
Arne Slot and his Liverpool squad are enduring a tough time(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
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There is a feeling in the Liverpool dressing room that they are not delivering for boss Arne Slot - but the Dutchman does not feel like his players are letting him down.
The Reds have been in woeful form of late and their ninth defeat in 12 games against PSV Eindhoven means this is their worst run of form in 72 years. Their most recent Premier League defeat - at the hands of Nottingham Forest a week ago - saw raised voices in the dressing room at full-time and it has emerged that players are frustrated with how the season is unfolding.
It's understood that the consensus among those in the dressing room is that Slot is being let down by his players, who have underperformed this season. After spending significantly in the summer to bolster Slot's squad, few expected such a fall.
But while Liverpool's players feel they are responsible for the team's current slump, Slot has refused to point the finger at his squad.
Instead, he made it clear that he did not feel that way at all in his press conference ahead of Sunday's game at West Ham. "No, not at all," he said when such a question was put to him. "Although I do agree with you that our standards, and with our, I mean the team, [they] have not been of the standards we are used to and that we want.
"We think we can play better than we do. But last season when we did really well there was a lot of focus on certain individuals and I always said it should be about the team and the team makes the individuals look very good.
"If the opposite is happening, we should also look at the team and not the individuals. That's what it's about for me."
Liverpool manager Arne Slot
Liverpool manager Arne Slot is under mounting pressure
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Virgil van Dijk has fronted up on more than one occasion about the team's performance, while Curtis Jones has also vented his frustration. There is discontent around Anfield.
Former Germany international Jurgen Klinsmann has suggested the group need to come together. Speaking to ESPN, he said: “It is a difficult task for any manager when you are in a negative spiral and tasked to turn it around. Do you look deep into your roster, look deep into your individual players and try to figure out why they are not performing at their usual level?
Virgil van Dijk and Alexis Mac Allister during Liverpool's Champions League defeat to PSV Eindhoven
Virgil van Dijk and Alexis Mac Allister during Liverpool's Champions League defeat to PSV Eindhoven(Image: (Marcel ter Bals/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images))
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“There are different ways. Some coaches do more training on the pitch, maybe they overwork them. Some coaches do less and say: 'Let's go out to the pub, have a couple of beers and get the spirit back!'
"It's a mental problem, a mental block that leads to the fact they lose the one-v-one battles, they are always a step too late getting into the challenges and are not convinced of finishing things off. Maybe they are thinking we overdid it on big transfers in the summer and we have too many so-called future stars on our roster because, at the end of the day, only 11 can play.
“You have three, four, five, six guys who are used to playing and they are not happy. When things go well, everything is quiet, everyone is all right and nobody says a bad word.
“But when things go wrong, behind the scenes people talk to each other, players talk to each other and you have to stop the negative spiral. I'm sure he will try to do everything he can to stop it, and then you can only come back with wins.
“They need a far more physical approach than they did recently. They need to fight first, then play wonderful football.”
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