Liverpool will have little time to recover after being hammered 4-0 by Manchester City, with their Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain looming large. The Reds were comprehensively beaten in their FA Cup quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium, with Erling Haaland bagging a hat-trick and Antoine Semenyo also getting on the scoresheet.
The defeat was Liverpool's 15th across all competitions this season, the highest number the club have endured in a single campaign since 2014/2015, when they suffered 18 losses under Brendan Rodgers.
The nature of their humiliation in Manchester has prompted Virgil van Dijk to level serious criticism at his fellow Reds. And Mohamed Salah received a message of support following his poor performance, as we explore the biggest stories emerging from Anfield.
The gravest accusation any side can face is that of throwing in the towel - and that is precisely what Van Dijk directed at his team-mates. In a season littered with dreadful displays and results, the Reds' 4-0 thrashing on Saturday may well have represented the lowest point of their campaign.
To compound matters further, Van Dijk conceded that his side surrendered during the match, a revelation that could carry serious consequences for the remainder of the club's season and potentially the future of Slot.
The Dutchman said: "I've been there already many times this season when I've had hope and then we couldn't build on performances. Our second half, the intensity we didn't match, the challenges we didn't win, it was tough.
"To lose then 4-0 is tough. Am I sick of repeating myself? 100%, of course. I can understand the fans' frustration as well. Obviously you come out of the dressing room [after half-time] with the right intentions to score and make it 2-1 and change the game.
"But the opposite happened and then to come back from 3-0 is obviously very difficult. Also you shouldn't give up, and that's maybe what happened at a certain point. It's mentally very tough at the moment, I must say."
Mohamed Salah suffered a particularly dismal afternoon at the Etihad Stadium. On top of what was a woeful display, the Egyptian squandered his second spot-kick in succession in what presently appears a disappointing conclusion to a distinguished Liverpool career.
The 33-year-old faced his former Reds coach Pep Lijnders on Saturday, with the Dutchman in charge of City in Pep Guardiola's absence owing to his touchline suspension.
Lijnders, 43, who collaborated with Salah for a significant portion of his career at Anfield, witnessed first-hand the excellence Salah demonstrated and confessed he hopes the winger can receive a farewell befitting of his standing in Merseyside.
At the final whistle, he said: "I hope so. He had seven or eight years at Liverpool wining the biggest trophies you can win in style. He will get all that (respect). It's nice for all the players who were in that generation of team [to get that respect]. They all deserve that."
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