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Wayne Rooney has warned Liverpool it could suffer a humiliating season like Manchester United or Tottenham if its awful run of form continues.
The Reds slumped to an eighth defeat in 11 games as Nottingham Forest handed them a resounding 3-0 beating at Anfield on Saturday. Arne Slot’s side has now lost six of its last seven Premier League games, with its title defense already looking as though it’s over.
Pressure is growing on the Liverpool boss, with Slot still unable to get his underperforming players to turn things around, even after the huge spending spree during the summer transfer window.
Having sat five points clear at the top of the table after winning their opening five games of the season, the Reds are now languishing in the bottom half of the table, having won just one league game since beating Everton in the Merseyside derby in September.
There is of course plenty of time for them to turn things around, and even amid their wretched run of form, they are still only two points off the top four as things stand. By the same token though, Liverpool is now closer to the relegation zone than league leader Arsenal.
And if Slot isn’t able to turn things around soon, Rooney thinks the Reds could find themselves in a similar situation to United and Tottenham last season - those two sides ended up finishing 15th and 17th respectively after disastrous campaigns.
“Liverpool are a very good team, and they’re going through a very difficult moment,” Rooney said while appearing on the BBC’s Match of the Day.
“They’ve been going through a tough time all season really. Even at the beginning of the season, they won games, but they were struggling with performances.
“I’ve said this throughout the season, it’s those leaders in that dressing room that have to pick the players up because, if not, then we’ve seen it over the last few years with Manchester United and we’ve seen it last season with Tottenham, they can slip down the table.”
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Rooney has called for Slot and his side to go back to basics, with Liverpool’s defense having proven to be unbelievably fragile so far this season.
The Reds have conceded 20 goals in their 12 league games so far - only West Ham, Burnley and Wolves have conceded more, with those sides making up three of the league’s bottom four at the moment.
“The easiest thing to do when you’re struggling is get back in shape, get compact, and Liverpool are very open at the minute and easy to play against,” Rooney added.
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