Liverpool's defeat to Nottingham Forest on Saturday afternoon piled further misery on what has already been a season to forget for Jurgen Klopp and his players. Having been defeated at the hands of Manchester United, Arsenal and Forest, it means the Reds have already lost more games in the league this campaign than they did during the whole of last season and have endured their worst start since Brendan Rodgers' final weeks at Anfield in 2015.
Further anguish was added to the loss at the City Ground after United and Chelsea played out a stalemate at Stamford Bridge later in the day. Meanwhile, Tottenham were defeated by Newcastle United on Sunday - meaning a victory against Steve Cooper's side the previous day would have lifted the Red to within two points of the Champions League places.
It leaves Liverpool with a pretty much equal record since the start of the season, having won four, drawn four and lost three of their eleven games.
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But despite the underwhelming start to the campaign, here's what opposition managers have had to say about facing Liverpool.
Marco Silva - Fulham
Liverpool travelled to West London on the opening weekend of the new Premier League season and were frustratingly held to a 2-2 draw against Marco Silva's newly-promoted side as an Alexsander Mitrovic double was enough to secure a share of the points for the Whites. Leaving Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez to restore parity on two separate occasions.
Klopp's men struggled to ever get going at Craven Cottage and were rightfully punished by the Whites' impressive Serbian, who his manager was full of praise for after the game. Mitrovic got the better of both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk for his well-taken double, with his second coming after the usually imperious Dutchman had uncharacteristically brought down the forward in the penalty area.
"I think that our organisation, our great first half, the way we blocked almost everything from them, in terms of the organisation in the first half - it was almost perfect," Silva told BBC Sport. "In the box, Mitro will score if you provide him good chances. But I repeat something I said last season maybe 20 times: Mitro is not just a goalscorer for us. He did an unbelievable job for us without the ball."
Patrick Vieira - Crystal Palace
Liverpool's second game of the Premier League season saw them return to Anfield after a three-month hiatus. Nunez's second half red card would steal the headlines as Klopp's men struggled to break down a resolute Patrick Vieira side. The visitors took a shock lead through Wilfried Zaha before the Reds responded via a majestic effort from Luis Diaz.
Speaking after the draw, the Frenchman said: “We are really happy with a point. Overall I think Liverpool had the chances, we had a couple of good ones. But I’m happy with the point.
“It’s not easy to stay calm here. With the crowd and the atmosphere we managed the situation really well. We needed to be calm and concentrated on what we wanted to do and we did that.
“Our plan was executed by the players. We didn’t show any kind of frustration. We remained calm and composed and we made it really difficult for them. The first 15-20 minutes was a bit challenging with the runs behind our back line but we managed to defend that quite well.”
Erik Ten Hag - Manchester United
Erik Ten Hag claimed his first victory as Manchester United manager in late August when Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford condemned Liverpool to their first Premier League defeat of 2022.
Defensive mistakes cost Liverpool once again as Van Dijk and Vice Captain James Milner exchanged stern words after Sancho’s opener. Rashford would grab the second shortly after half-time before Mohamed Salah fired a late consolation.
Building up to the game, plenty of the talk had been about how Liverpool could target 5'9" defender Lisandro Martinez. But alongside World Cup winner Raphael Varane, the Argentine helped his new team-mates defeat the ‘best team in the world,’ according to his manager.
"The spirit was already good, but now it's even better, it's clear," said Ten Hag in the days after amassing his first three points as United boss. "It's only one game so we have to build further on, we have to develop and I think everyone is aware of that.
"It helps of course. I said before the game Liverpool is, especially last year, the best playing football team for me in the world and when you beat them it must give you a lot of confidence.”
Scott Parker - Bournemouth
Klopp’s men bounced back from their disappointing display at Old Trafford by thrashing newly-promoted Bournemouth 9-0 at Anfield. It would turn out to be Scott Parker’s final game in charge of the south coast otufit as his infamous post-match interview, which referenced the Cherries’ lack of spending in the summer, upset the club's hierarchy.
"I feel sorry for the fans, I feel sorry for the players because we are just a bit underequipped at this level from where we've come from and what we have. It has been difficult," said Parker after the game. “They see a team were trying everything they possibly could. The levels were just far too great for us.
"It [the result] doesn't shine a light on it [what's going wrong] for me because throughout the summer that's exactly where I've seen it. There are players playing in this team with huge quality but this is the first time they are experiencing Premier League and we are where we are. Of course, I never would have thought we would come here and get beaten 9-0 but I expected and saw things I knew this season would be a real challenge for us in certain moments, in certain games.
"Tonight will be a long, sleepless night and I'm sure the players will reflect and it will be a difficult one to process. We're learning real, real harsh lessons and, at times, it's probably not fair. The lessons you learn at this level, and not just against Liverpool or the other three fixtures we've had, this division is ruthless and that's why I feel for these players. It can leave some scars in terms of the experiences they're facing.
"Liverpool are ruthless and my boys were flat to the floor. I don't think I could look at one of them and say we lacked here and there. At times, we were searching for oxygen and trying to breathe. It was a tough, humbling experience."
Eddie Howe - Newcastle
Fabio Carvalho’s stoppage-time winner against Newcastle late in August would allow the Reds to gain momentum and build on their trouncing of the Cherries, claiming back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
The Magpies’ club-record signing Alexander Isak opened the scoring on his first start for the club, before Roberto Firmino and Carvalho fired second goals to turn the contest around for Klopp’s side.
"That's the pain of football," Howe told reporters after the game. "That's the horrible side of it when your team has given everything. It is a sickener for us but it is part of the game. We just didn't deal with the corner.
"I thought we played well in the first half. Naturally, when you are 1-0 up here you are not going to be the dominant team and you are going to have to withstand pressure. It is difficult to defend against this team."
Frank Lampard - Everton
With injuries starting beginning to creep into Liverpool’s squad at the end of August - leaving Klopp without Jordan Henderson, Thiago Alcantara and Naby Keita - a draw at Goodison Park didn’t represent a bad days work during September’s Merseyside Derby.
Despite being a Conor Coady offside away from securing their first Goodison Park triumph over the Reds since October 2010, Blues supporters would have Jordan Pickford for their solitary point after he made a superb save to tip Nunez’s effort onto the crossbar.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Lampard said: "He [Pickford] was absolutely superb - especially the save in the first half from Darwin Nunez. We had been as comfortable as you could possibly be against Liverpool up to that point in the first half.”
Roberto de Zerbi - Brighton
After four weeks without a Premier League game due to the death of Queen Elizabeth on September 8, Liverpool would return to action against Brighton in early October. Impressively, in their first outing under new manager Roberto de Zerbi, the Seagulls raced into a two-goal lead and looked like becoming the first side to win at a populated Anfield for five-and-a-half years.
However, a brace from Firmino and an own goal from Adam Webster would turn the game on its head as the Reds lead 3-2. But a hat-trick-sealing strike from Leandro Trossard would condemn Liverpool to just a share of the points.
“I am very happy for the game. We played a very good game,” De Zerbi told reporters. “It was a very good match.
“We have the possibility to score more but in Anfield, and I know it is my first game in the Premier League, but I know Anfield. I know the difficulties in this stadium.
“We have shown today (what we are about) when in the first half we were able to make four or five passes in a row against such a strong team as Liverpool. It was decreasing the pressure."
Mikel Arteta - Arsenal
A Gabriel Martinelli goal after 58 seconds, followed by a brace from Bukayo Saka sentenced Liverpool to their second league defeat of the season.
For Arsenal, it boosted their status as title challengers, something which pleased Mikel Arteta.
“I don’t know (if we can win the Premier League),” said the Spaniard post-match. “For me I’m not going to be mentioning it or hearing it from me. I’m just really happy where we are.
“Is it my best win as a manager? I don’t know. But I’m really, really happy today. In the moment enjoy where we are, and play with the courage we did in the second half.
“On the day we play our best we have a chance (of beating everyone). The feeling of winning is so powerful. I identified with the personalities that stuck together in difficult moments."
Pep Guardiola - Manchester City
Despite the defeat in North London a week earlier, Klopp’s men bounced back in the most emphatic way possible as they beat champions Manchester City 1-0 at Anfield.
A backs-to-the-wall performance, tail-ended with a stunning individual goal from Salah appeared to the world like the perfect foundation for the Reds to use to get their Premier League campaign back on track.
“We didn't follow the transition that we know every time Alisson plays quick. Kevin (De Bruyne) didn't follow, Joao (Cancelo) lost the duel – it is always difficult against Salah because he uses his body so well – and this is what we have to learn for the future for tight games like against Liverpool and Champions League games,” Guardiola bemoaned in his post-match press conference.
“They shouted, we shout more. Otherwise, here in this stadium you go. The game was calm and then after the goal was disallowed and after they scored a goal, it was the real Anfield.
“When I arrived here it says 'This is Anfield'. Many years we come here and we lost because we made a mistake and played one of the best teams in the world”
David Moyes - West Ham United
In action three days later, Nunez’s first Anfield goal for Liverpool was enough to overcome West Ham United in another tightly contested game. Despite the goal, it would take an Alisson Becker penalty save and a late intervention from James Milner to secure maximum points
Moyes said: “I’m disappointed in the end when we didn’t come out with something when we had a big opportunity to do so,” he said. “We have been here a few times and it’s the same story. I hoped I’d be able to change it but weren’t quite able to get over the line.
“We didn’t play particularly well first half and didn’t set up quite right at the start. We got much better second half. Even when we didn’t do well first half, we were a threat and we got past them a few times.”
Steve Cooper - Nottingham Forest
Despite successive victories in the Premier League, Liverpool would stutter once again on Saturday afternoon as they came up against bottom-of-the-table Nottingham Forest.
A striker from former Reds forward Taiwo Awoniyi after the interval would prove to be the difference between the two sides as Virgil van Dijk spurned a handful of opportunities from close range.
"T worked so hard," said Forest boss Steve Cooper. “We played him today as we thought he could be a handful for Virgil van Dijk.
"He really proved to be that and deserved his goal," said Cooper. "If he didn’t celebrate, I’ll support whatever a player decides to do. Liverpool loads of the ball and territory, we had some good chances as well.
"Obviously it feels great, there are a few things about the win which are really important; one, we really needed a win because we've been on a poor run.
"It is a very important win for the club and the city, there is a nice history about the fixture and definitely a game fans looked forward and I know for us to win the game is important for many generations."
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