Jurgen Klopp sarcastically described Dietmar Hamann as "a fantastic source" after the former Liverpool player suggested the club's poor form may lead to a change of manager.
Liverpool head into Wednesday's Champions League group game at Rangers with just four wins to their name from 11 matches this season in all competitions.
Sunday's 3-2 loss to Arsenal leaves Liverpool with 10 Premier League points this term, with that their lowest tally after eight games since the 2012-13 campaign (nine points).
And speaking on Tuesday, Hamann said Liverpool chiefs may soon have to discuss Klopp's future at Anfield after seven years in the job for his German compatriot.
Klopp did not take kindly when asked for a response to Hamann's comments during his pre-match press conference ahead of the Rangers match.
"Who said that? Didi Hamann? Oh great. A fantastic source, well respected everywhere," Klopp said.
"[Being a former Liverpool player] does not give you the right to say what you want, especially when you have no idea.
"I actually think Didi Hamann does not deserve that you use his phrase to ask a question. Do me a favour and ask your own question."
Liverpool have won back-to-back matches in the Champions League, including a 2-0 win over Rangers last week, since going down 4-1 to Napoli in their Group A opener.
That loss to Napoli came in their most recent away match in the competition, though not since September 2019 have they lost successive games on their travels on the continent.
Klopp's mood was not improved after it was confirmed that Luis Diaz will miss the next two months, while Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joel Matip are out for a fortnight.
But the Liverpool manager, whose second-place side sit three points behind Napoli and three ahead of Ajax, insists he is up for the challenge of turning things around.
"If you sleep on a problem, sometimes you realise life goes on. I just stood there at Arsenal and we had lost the game. I knew already that we had three big injuries," he said.
"This is a tough situation but it also a challenge. We always face challenges but we go for it.
"I am sorry to all our people that after last season we go again and it's not the case that we are competing for everything.
"I cannot promise that we will fly [against Rangers] but we will fight, definitely, until someone tells us the fight is over.
"It hasn't got easier since Sunday because of the injuries but the team I saw in training I liked a lot. So let's give it a go."
Howe bemoans 'strange decisions' from Newcastle in West Ham defeat
Eddie Howe bemoaned some "strange decisions" and individual errors as Newcastle United lost 2-0 against West Ham at St James' Park.
Newcastle's three-match winning run in all competitions was halted as goals from Tomas Soucek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka earned West Ham victory in Monday's Premier League clash.
Soucek's 10th-minute opener came via a free header from a corner, while Wan-Bissaka had space inside the box to get a shot away for his goal early in the second half.
At the other end, Alexander Isak failed to find the target from any of his six shots, including one Opta-defined big opportunity at 1-0 down.
Reflecting on the defeat, Howe told Sky Sports: "It was a mixed night for us. In the first 60 minutes, although we were 2-0 down, we played some good football.
"But I was disappointed by the two goals we conceded and the last half-hour was really disappointing. We got our organisation wrong and made a couple of individual errors.
"If you leave a player with Tomas Soucek's aerial ability unmarked, you are going to pay the price. It's something we have to learn from.
"I was always confident we were in the game and there was a very good chance we could come back. But we missed some gilt-edged chances in the first half.
"I didn't feel we really got going in the second half. We made some strange decisions. I didn't like the end part of the game."
Newcastle have now lost two of their past three Premier League home games, as many losses as in their previous 20 outings at St James' Park.
The Magpies tasted defeat against West Ham in the Premier League for only the second time in 11 outings and dropped one place to 10th in the table, four points adrift of the top four.
"It's a really difficult one to take," Newcastle defender Lewis Hall told BBC Sport. "It was a massive game for us. We'd have been two points off second if we won.
"It was a frustrating game for us. We had a lot of the ball. When you are on top, you have to find a way to put the ball in the net, which we didn't do today."
Newcastle have failed to find the net in three of their past six league games and have just 13 goals for the season – only Everton, Crystal Palace (both 10) and Southampton (nine) have fewer.
"We know we can score goals," Hall added. "This season, we've defended better than we've attacked. But last season, we attacked better than we defended.
"It's about doing both. My message to the fans is to stick with us. Everyone works so hard throughout the week."
Bowen: Victory at Newcastle 'a really big turning point' for West Ham
Jarrod Bowen praised the manner of West Ham's victory at Newcastle United and believes it will act as "a really big turning point" in his side's campaign.
West Ham won 2-0 at St James' Park in Monday's Premier League contest thanks to goals from Tomas Soucek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
The victory is just the Hammers' fourth in 12 league matches under Julen Lopetegui, who has seen his job as head coach called into question early in his tenure.
Bowen, who assisted Wan-Bissaka's goal, believes things are now starting to turn for his side after a slow start to the campaign.
Asked by Sky Sports if it could be a big win for Lopetegui, Bowen replied: "I think it is for everyone associated with the club. We've been disappointed with our start.
"We have to take responsibility and do our work. We haven't done that to a high enough ability this year. It was a real big moment and this is a really big turning point in our season.
"[Lopetegui] has come in with different ideas and playing from the back but also mixing it up as well.
"That's up to us to adapt too, and he has come in with fresh good ideas, especially for us attacking players. We are getting there."
Bowen overtook Paolo Di Canio with his 79th Premier League goal involvement for West Ham and is now behind only Michail Antonio (101) and Mark Noble (82).
Wan-Bissaka's strike early in the second half added to Soucek's 10th-minute opener, with that his fourth Premier League goal against Newcastle – against no team does he have a better record.
West Ham remain 14th in the league but are now just three points off the top-half places, with a home match against Arsenal next up on Saturday.
Lopetegui, who replaced David Moyes ahead of the 2024-25 campaign, was pleased with the win but believes there is more to come from his side.
"We are happy. I think that we played well," he told Sky Sports. "We played with one identity and we were able to overcome a very good team.
"They started well and it is always good to have more confidence. They had two chances and I think in the second half we did well and deserved to win.
"I am happy for the players, for the team and for the fans. They will have to drive a lot of miles so we are happy for them. We look forward to the next challenge. We are happy but we have a lot of work to do.
"We have to build as a team if we are to work and know what we want to do. I think about their play. That is the thing that we try to do.
"We have a lot of matches that we need to do and I believe in the future this team is going to be able to show the style as a team.
"The players believe and they are able to put in the focus every day. Each match is one incredible challenge in the Premier League."
Newcastle United 0-2 West Ham: Soucek and Wan-Bissaka relieve pressure on Lopetegui
Tomas Soucek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka scored as West Ham defeated Newcastle United 2-0 at St James' Park on Monday to ease the pressure on boss Julen Lopetegui.
Newcastle entered the game on a three-match winning run, including back-to-back victories in the Premier League, but it was a previously out-of-form West Ham side who came out on top.
Soucek profited from some poor Newcastle defending to head West Ham into a 10th-minute lead, coming after Alexander Isak had a goal rightly disallowed for offside.
Isak missed a good chance and Anthony Gordon was denied by Lukasz Fabianski, before Wan-Bissaka fired in his first goal for the Hammers eight minutes into the second half after being played in by Jarrod Bowen.
Fabianski had next to nothing to do from that point on as West Ham saw out a win that keeps them 14th but now within three points of Newcastle, who are 10th and still four points adrift of the top four.
Data Debrief: Happy Mondays for West Ham
West Ham have now won eight of their past nine Premier League games on a Monday, with the only exception in that run being a 3-1 loss at Arsenal on Boxing Day 2022.
Soucek's goal was his fourth against Newcastle in the Premier League – against no side does he have more – with each of those giving West Ham the lead.
Three of Wan-Bissaka's four goals in the competition have come against today's opponents, meanwhile, this latest one being assisted by Bowen.
The England forward has now been involved in 79 Premier League goals for West Ham – one more than Paolo Di Canio, and now behind only Michail Antonio (101) and Mark Noble (82).
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