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The Liverpool skipper has issued a blunt evaluation of Liverpool's disappointing championship campaign, confessing the title holders are in disarray and letting down head coach Slot while doubting whether all squad members is taking responsibility for the current downturn.

Van Dijk struggled to hold back his frustration after Saturday’s heavy loss at Anfield by Forest, a result that saw the Reds in the bottom half of the Premier League table with a deficit in goals. Tom Werner was in attendance to witness Liverpool’s latest loss in recent outings, their eighth setback in 11 matches across every tournament, and a display that fell apart against a Forest side that started the day in the relegation zone.

Poor Second Half and Set-Piece Woes

Van Dijk labeled Liverpool’s opening after halftime as “unacceptable” and admitted “panic kicked in” as soon as the Forest player gave Sean Dyche’s team the lead. The first goal was the ninth concession Liverpool have allowed from dead-ball situations in the current campaign.

“We had a great three or four days’ preparation but in a game you are dealing with reality and the truth is we gave away a free-kick in the first half and a terrible goal at the beginning after the break,” said Van Dijk. “We are definitely failing the manager, but we’ve let ourselves down as well. Start with self-reflection and then you support teammates, you work together to escape of this mess because at the present time it is a mess – that’s just a fact.

Van Dijk’s Demands: Step Up

Van Dijk usually speaks the media after a match as part of his duties as Liverpool captain. Saturday was different, however. His voice was much louder – audible enough that any teammate in the Anfield tunnel could hear him – and he shook with anger while challenging the squad to react. “You should be angry,” he insisted. “The key point for me is that everyone has to be accountable.” When questioned whether this is occurring, he replied: “I don’t know. But it's essential. That's crucial I expect the boys to do. It's challenging during difficult times but we have to do it if we want to get out of this.”

Squad Investment and Broader Issues

The Merseyside club invested almost £450 million to strengthen a title-winning squad in the off-season but have regressed, with new arrivals failing to make an impact so far. Van Dijk insisted that Liverpool’s issues extend past the recent additions. “It’s tough for everyone,” he said. “My expectation is for each player to be answerable on the field. This is necessary in order to push each other, to make each other better. If a teammate presses, you must join the effort. These are fundamentals but they're lacking enough.”

Appeal to Stick Together

Van Dijk added: “In the current term we don’t have any steady form, we allow far too many goals, we are losing battles and all share the blame for it and I trust everyone sees that. We have to take responsibility to turn this around and it is easy to assign blame but unity is essential. We have been through it together and won the league and everyone was part of it, and during a challenging phase you have to stick together and avoid blaming others.

“Show character and confront the hardship and go again, again and again because if you want to give up then you are in the wrong environment in my view, because Liverpool has been enduring numerous challenges over those years and we’ve consistently emerged of it. However, that doesn't imply it is easy, it’s tiring but there is only one path forward.”

Next Fixtures

The upcoming match in the domestic league is a trip to West Ham next Sunday, after the Champions League fixture of the Dutch side in the European competition. He commented: “Wednesday is another game so what am I going to do, go home and cry? Certainly not, I’m going to go home and try to think how we can improve results and hopefully that is what everyone is doing as well.”