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Liverpool's head coach declared he needed to “examine my own performance” following the Reds endured a sixth loss in seven Premier League matches at home to Forest and affirmed he would discover a solution out of the title holders' slump.

Nottingham Forest, in the relegation zone before kick off, produced the biggest victory at Anfield in their history as the Merseyside club slipped to an eighth defeat in 11 fixtures in all competitions. The British record signing, the Swedish striker, was again unnoticeable and the home side argued the defender's first goal ought to have been disallowed for comparable grounds to the captain's disallowed effort versus City before the international break. But Slot conceded the buck rested with him and made no excuses.

“Nobody wishes to hear me now talking about refereeing decisions if you are defeated 3-0 in your own stadium to Forest,” said the Reds' boss. “I ought to examine my own role first and my squad, but it demonstrates you how a score can change the flow of a game. Before I was just hoping for us to score a strike. Later we barely created any chances.

“Of course there is a way out, especially with the quality players we have. Regardless if you win or are beaten when you reflect you are always considering: ‘Where can we improve, where can we make changes?’ but that is different from doubting yourself.

“I wish to emphasise I am accountable for the current defeats. You are responsible when you are winning but also responsible when you are defeated. I can never provide enough reasons for us to have the outcomes we have. That is not acceptable and I am responsible for that.”

Liverpool’s performance unravelled as Slot introduced multiple offensive substitutions when chasing the match. “It was the identical away at Nottingham Forest last season,” he remarked. “I took the French defender out and brought on [Diogo] Jota and he scored immediately to equalize at 1-1. Then it was courageous, now it’s probably stupid.”

The Anfield side previously were defeated in two successive home Premier League games against Nottingham Forest in 1963. The last time they lost consecutive league matches by a 3-0 margin was in 1965.

The manager said: “It was very bad. Playing at home, losing 3-0 regardless of which opponent you face is a terrible outcome. Surprising if you look at the first half-hour of the match. I did not witness us producing so much in the initial 30 minutes perhaps the entire season, and the initial occasion they entered in our penalty area they scored.

“It did not happen at City, but in every other fixture we have been the controlling team and were capable to create opportunities. Recently it is almost constantly that we miss our opportunities and the attempts we allow go in.”