Virgil van Dijk has said he called a players’ meeting after Liverpool’s defeat by Manchester United to lift the mood and remind the squad how quickly their fortunes could change.
Liverpool ended a run of four consecutive defeats with a 5-1 rout of Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League on Wednesday, with Van Dijk one of five goalscorers.
Arne Slot changed personnel and formation to spark an improvement in Germany. His captain believes the clear-the-air talks contributed to the recovery.
“On Monday, everyone was sad because we lost to Man United at home,” Van Dijk said. “We haven’t lost many games at home during my time at Liverpool. It was tough under the circumstances, so on Monday we came together, but it wasn’t a crisis meeting. We all know how things can change. We’re only in October.
“Nobody wants to lose four games in a row, but it was the situation we faced. We had to stay calm and block out all the noise from the outside because that’s something you can’t control. The only way to get out of a situation like that is to stay together, keep your mind on the task ahead, try to improve, keep the confidence, embrace the moment.
“They are all things that are easier to say than actually do. But if you want to get out of it, you have to do it. We live in a world now where there is always noise – always something to be said, always someone who knows is better. We have to stay focused on ourselves.”
Van Dijk said there was a noticeable improvement in the atmosphere after the players’ meeting. “Before my meeting yes [the mood was downbeat] but after my meeting everyone was happy.
“We had a proper debrief with the manager, but we also had a separate one as players. I wanted to say some things … It’s not something I do after every game. Let’s keep it that way.”
Andy Robertson admitted there was an acceptance at the meeting that performances needed to improve after defeats by United, Chelsea, Galatasaray and Crystal Palace. The Scotland captain, who came back into the side against Eintracht and created Hugo Ekitiké’s equaliser, said: “The message from the leaders in the group after Manchester United was: ‘Don’t panic.’
“We need to get our performance levels lifted and that’s a fact. That’s what we tried to focus on, lifting our performance levels with and without the ball. Thankfully we did that and then when we go 3-1 up you see lads starting to enjoy themselves. That’s what you want.
“We always talk in the changing room, even when we were winning five games in a row, so that’s normal. There wasn’t a panic, it was more: ‘Keep doing what you’re doing, keep focusing, and as long as we stick together everything will turn.’”
Florian Wirtz played right midfield on his return to Germany, as Slot switched to 4-4-2, and created second-half goals for Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai. The £110m signing, whose price could rise to £116m, has made a quiet start at Liverpool but Robertson said: “Flo has been really good since he came here. People focus on numbers of goals and assists but at times it’s unfair as he’s created a hell of a lot of chances and today some of the chances he created ended up in an assist.”
Liverpool visit Brentford on Saturday with Alexander Isak and Jeremie Frimpong expected to miss out after sustaining groin and hamstring injuries respectively in Germany. Liverpool are awaiting confirmation on the extent of the injuries.
