Virgil van Dijk makes damning claim over Liverpool mentality after Manchester City collapse

Virgil van Dijk has delivered a scathing assessment of Liverpool’s fragile mentality after Arne Slot’s side were dumped out of the FA Cup by Manchester City on Saturday.

The quarterfinal meeting of two Premier League giants in the FA Cup was expected to be tightly contested but proved to be anything but by the final whistle.

Although there was little to separate the teams in the first 35 minutes, Liverpool completely collapsed after Erling Haaland put City in front from the penalty spot. The spot-kick came after a foul by van Dijk six minutes before halftime, and Haaland added a second in first-half injury time.

Pep Guardiola’s side scored four goals in 18 minutes of game time either side of the break, with van Dijk admitting it looked as if his team had effectively thrown in the towel after going 3-0 down in the 50th minute.

“We let our fans down”

“I can only apologise to the fans for what we have shown, especially the second half,” said the Dutch defender.

“Obviously you come out with the right intentions from the dressing room, to hopefully score for 2-1 as soon as possible to change the game. The opposite happens and to come back from 3-0 is obviously very difficult here - but also you shouldn’t give up and that’s maybe, at a certain point, what happened.

“We let our fans down, we let ourselves down, and the manager. The way we played in the second half, especially, must hurt for everyone. It definitely hurts me.”

Reality check before PSG showdown

The result is the worst possible preparation for what is now Liverpool’s biggest game of the season against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, the only trophy the Merseysiders can still realistically pursue.

Arne Slot’s side go into Wednesday’s quarterfinal first leg having won only one of their last five matches in all competitions, a run that does little to inspire confidence before facing the Champions League holders.

Pressure mounting in top-five race

Additionally, Liverpool are at serious risk of missing out on qualification for next season’s competition. The top five Premier League teams are likely to qualify, so they would get in as things stand. However, the fifth-placed Reds are just a point clear of Chelsea and three points ahead of Brentford and Everton, with seven games left to play.

The race, and the pressure, is on.

Get closer to the game! Whether you like your soccer of the European variety or that on this side of the pond, our AS USA app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more. Plus, stay updated on NFL, NBA and all other big sports stories as well as the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.

And there’s more: check out our TikTok and Instagram reels for bite-sized visual takes on all the biggest soccer news and insights.