Virgil van Dijk hands Liverpool reality check after champions sink to new low

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk had some stern words following the Reds’ Premier League defeat to Brentford and knows a stiff task awaits against Crystal Palace next time out

Virgil van Dijk has admitted defeat to Brentford is tough to take after Liverpool crashed to a fourth Premier League loss in a row. The Reds captain has called upon his team-mates to turn around their mindsets against Crystal Palace — the team that instigated their losing run.

Arne Slot’s team were unable to build on their win over Frankfurt and failed to claim three points in west London after Dango Ouattara and Kevin Schade gave the Bees the lead, before Milos Kerkez pulled a goal back. Igor Thiago scored from the spot to restore the gap in the second period, and Liverpool only managed a late consolation through Mo Salah.

Things will not get easier for the Reds as they next face Oliver Glasner’s Eagles in the Carabao Cup. Palace have already defeated Liverpool twice this season, with victories in the Community Shield and the Premier League.

Van Dijk is very aware of that fact. “It’s the reality that we lost today,” he said after the defeat to Brentford.

“We have the next game on Wednesday against an opponent [Crystal Palace] who already made our life difficult this season. We have to turn our mindset pretty quickly to be ready for that.

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“They will come to Anfield to hurt us even more, but this is a tough one to take. We can’t deny that. It’s not an easy moment. We were trying to build on that performance iagainst Frankfurt and this was not a nice evening to have.

Netherlands international Van Dijk lamented his side’s inability to keep a clean sheet after proving to have a stingy defence in the past. The defender admitted he must look in the mirror as much as everyone else to try and get back to the side’s highest standards.

“It’s difficult to say,” responded Van Dijk when asked why Liverpool were struggling to earn clean sheets.

“The fact we didn’t keep a clean sheet for nine games! It’s easy to blame a particular person, the backline or set-pieces. But it’s a collective thing in the end. Everyone has to look in the mirror, including myself. I am sure we will get out of this.

“But we won’t do it just by talking about it. We will try to improve. We need each other, we ned the support.

“We need the people who were celebrating with us last year to be with us now even more. We will get out of this because we have the quality offensively and defensively.”

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