Harvey Elliot has opened up on the Liverpool dressing room's reaction to Darwin Nunez’s red card against Crystal Palace on Monday.
The new Reds forward had a home debut to forget, squandering a handful of chances while being the subject of several sly fouls at the hands of Joachim Andersen. And the red mist descended on the hour mark, with Nunez attempting to throw his head back into the Dane before making full contact.
Paul Tierney was yards away and looking directly at the incident, giving the referee no option but to show a straight red. And despite Luis Diaz’s stunning solo goal just minutes later, a 10-man Liverpool failed to find a winning goal.
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And Reds midfielder Elliott has lifted the lid on the reaction within the dressing room at full-time following the 1-1 draw, explaining how the squad rallied around their Uruguayan frontman.
“It’s not his fault to be honest because we conceded the goal in the first half, which put us in that situation,” Elliott told Liverpoolfc.com . “For him (Nunez) it’s a learning curve and for the team it’s our fault, it’s not just him, it’s everyone’s fault.
“We’re instantly around him trying to lift him up. Obviously, he’s very down in the changing room feeling sorry for the team and thinking it’s his fault, which it’s not, it’s all of our faults.”
Liverpool’s £64million summer signing will be unavailable for the next three games for the charge of violent conduct, meaning he will not be in the squad for Monday’s trip to Old Trafford to take on old foes Manchester United. Both sides go into the clash looking for their first win of the season, but while the Reds have had plenty to take from both games, the mood around Manchester is much more disconsolate.
Erik Ten Hag’s side lost on the opening day 2-1 at home to Brighton and followed that with a 4-0 drubbing at Brentford. But Elliott remains cautious over what he thinks will still be a tough game, and he admitted Jurgen Klopp's squad are desperate to right the wrongs of the opening fortnight.
“Man United is always going to be a tough game away at their place,” the teenager added. “We’re just going to be fully focused and with full fight and hopefully we can go in and put it right this time.”
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