Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has accused his team of giving up and apologized to fans following their "humiliating" FA Cup defeat to Manchester City.
Liverpool's hopes of salvaging a domestic title from a disappointing season were shattered after a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.
After an evenly matched first half hour, Liverpool succumbed as Manchester City scored four goals in 18 minutes.
"I can only apologize to the fans for what we showed, especially in the second half," Van Dijk said on Sunday.
He added, "Obviously you leave the dressing room with the right intentions, hoping to score to make it 2-1 as soon as possible to change the game... but the opposite happened, and coming back from a three-goal deficit is very difficult here, for sure, but also you shouldn't give up, and that's probably what happened at a certain moment."
He noted, "We let down our fans, we let ourselves down, and the coach. The way we played in the second half, in particular, should hurt everyone, and it certainly hurts me."
The Dutch defender explained, "The reality now is that Paris Saint-Germain is waiting for us (in the Champions League quarter-finals), it will be very difficult again, so we have to be mentally prepared as soon as possible."
He concluded by saying, "I'm trying to think about how to turn these situations around... We fall behind in matches where we lose because of physical strength or you lose because of how much you really want to fight to win. It's hard to accept and everyone needs to look at themselves."
Liverpool currently sit fifth in the Premier League table, 21 points behind leaders Arsenal, making the chance of competing for the Premier League title virtually impossible from a sporting perspective.
With this reality, the Reds have only one remaining hope to avoid a trophyless season, which is winning the Champions League. The team is preparing to face the defending champion, Paris Saint-Germain, in the quarter-finals of the continental tournament, which kicks off in the middle of next week, in a difficult test that is a real test for the team’s season and its last chance to salvage what can be salvaged.
