Jurgen Klopp acknowledged Liverpool are enduring a tough run but insisted performances have not been as bad as results suggest.
The defending Premier League champions are top of the table again but have won just two of their past six matches – and two of seven in all competitions.
Rivals Manchester United, who have a game in hand, have moved level on points with the Reds at the summit ahead of the two sides meeting next weekend.
"We were not waiting for [this run of form] and we do not enjoy it, but it's not unlikely that these kinds of things happen," Klopp told a news conference on Thursday.
"I think we only won two of the last six – that's not the standard we expect from ourselves, obviously.
"So, we don't take it easy, but we still see what we can improve, what we have to improve, and don't think everything was bad in the last few weeks.
"The league is too strong, and if you struggle a little bit, immediately the results go the other way because the opponents are fighting with everything they had. You saw that against Southampton [a 1-0 defeat on Monday]."
Liverpool must first focus on the FA Cup, however, with Aston Villa hosting Klopp's men in the third round on Friday.
Last season's run to round five was Liverpool's best under Klopp, with the Anfield outfit eliminated from four of their past six ties against fellow Premier League sides, only beating Everton (in 2018 and 2020) in this time.
The Reds had reached the semi-final in the final season before Klopp's appointment, losing to Villa in the last four to end a six-match winning run against Friday's opponents in the competition.
Despite his underwhelming record in the competition, the manager says Liverpool have always been determined to succeed.
"It's important. It's the FA Cup," he said. "We didn't go far so far in this competition.
"I didn't think we were blessed so far with sensational draws so far and now we go to Aston Villa, which is a tough one as well.
"We always took it very seriously and will do this time as well, but we cannot forget the intensity of the period we are in and all these kinds of things.
"It's important – football games are important. We are professional football players or coaches or managers and the only thing we have to do is to win football games and to try to make sure that we really can do that. It's a very important competition, so we will try to win that."
Liverpool were beaten 7-2 by Villa in the Premier League this term, shipping seven goals in a single match in any competition for the first time since 1963.
Klopp is therefore reluctant to name a weakened team, even with the United game on the horizon.
"We need to find the balance to field a team where we didn't change too much," he said. "We bring in fresh legs again.
"The rhythm [for returning players] is a different issue. That's step by step. We cannot do that in one game. We can't use the FA Cup to give players rhythm – the opponent is just too strong for that.
"After the Aston Villa game, we have eight days between Villa and Man United, so that's a long training week where we can do a lot of stuff in 11-v-11 situations, which will help the players a lot, especially the players who were out for a while. After that, we will be in a different place."
Pressed on specific injuries, Klopp added Naby Keita would return "soon" but not this weekend and Liverpool "will try" to have Joel Matip back for Manchester United, although Diogo Jota is still wearing a brace on a damaged knee.
Real Madrid and England midfielder Jude Bellingham wins Laureus award
Jude Bellingham joined Novak Djokovic and Aitana Bonmati as the big winners at the Laureus World Sports Awards as the England midfielder won the World Breakthrough of the Year prize in Madrid.
Bellingham became the first footballer to claim the honour the day after scoring Real Madrid’s late winner in their 3-2 El Clasico victory over Barcelona.
The 20-year-old has had an outstanding first season at Real since joining from Borussia Dortmund last summer, scoring 21 goals in all competitions.
Djokovic was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record-equalling fifth time after winning the Australian Open, French Open and US Open to lead the way with 24 grand slam men’s singles titles.
“I am incredibly honoured to have won my fifth Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award,” said Djokovic.
“I think back to 2012, when I won it for the first time as a 24-year-old. I am very proud to be here 12 years later, reflecting on a year that brought me and my fans a lot of excitement and success.
“It was thrilling to return to Australia last January and win my 10th title. It is a tournament that is so dear to my heart and set me up for an incredible 12 months.
“I could not have achieved so much success without an incredible team behind me, and inspirational rivals who have always pushed me to be the best version of myself.”
Bonmati took to the stage twice to collect two awards – the first footballer to win the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year trophy and also represent the Spain team which won the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
She said: “It is humbling to see the list of previous winners of this award.
“From Serena Williams to Simone Biles, Lindsey Vonn, Naomi Osaka and last year’s winner Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, they are all incredible athletes who have not only excelled in their chosen sports, but been incredible role models for younger generations of young women and girls.
“As the first women’s team to win the Laureus, we are proud of our status as pioneers and as a group we are as committed to equality and representation as we are to what we do on the football pitch.”
American gymnast Biles, a three-time winner of Sportswoman of the Year, won the World Comeback of the Year Award.
Biles collected four gold medals at the World Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, her first global event since leaving the Tokyo Olympics due to mental health issues and entering a near two-year break from the sport she had dominated.
Other award winners were Rafael Nadal (Sport for Good), Diede de Groot (World Sportsperson of the Year with a disability) and Arisa Trew (World Action Sportsperson of the Year).
:: The 25th Laureus World Sports Awards took place on Monday 22 April in Madrid, celebrating the leading names in sport from across the globe. To find out more, visit www.laureus.com.
FA seeks ‘formal observations’ from Forest trio over comments about officiating
Nottingham Forest face the threat of Football Association and Premier League charges over their extraordinary attack on the officiating of their match against Everton on Sunday.
Three Forest members of staff – head coach Nuno Espirito Santo, referee analyst Mark Clattenburg and full-back Neco Williams – have been asked by the FA to explain comments they made about the refereeing at Goodison Park, while the Premier League is also examining the club’s social media post which appeared to question the integrity of VAR Stuart Attwell.
The statements from the authorities came within hours of Forest demanding the release of VAR audio related to the rejection of three penalty appeals during their 2-0 defeat.
Forest first issued a club statement on X on Sunday, minutes after the final whistle, in which they said they had “warned” referees’ chief Howard Webb that Attwell “is a Luton fan” but that no change was made to the match appointment.
The club went further on Monday evening and called on Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) to change its rules on officials’ allegiances to account for “contextual rivalries in the league table”, not just local rivalries.
The Premier League said it was “extremely disappointed” by the statement issued on Sunday and added: “It is never appropriate to improperly question the integrity of match officials, and the nature of these comments means the Premier League will also be investigating the matter in relation to the league’s rules.”
Sources have since told PA that Clattenburg did contact Webb on Friday to share that he thought Nuno might be asked about Attwell by the media, but that Forest did not raise Attwell’s appointment as a concern or make a request to change the appointment.
Chelsea to take strongest possible action after Nicolas Jackson racially abused
Chelsea have threatened to bring criminal charges against anyone found to have racially abused Nicolas Jackson in the aftermath of Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester City.
The 22-year-old striker missed a number of chances at Wembley as his side bowed out of the cup with a 1-0 defeat and was subsequently the target of abuse on social media.
The racist comments were left on an Instagram post he had made following last week’s victory over Everton, in which he scored his 10th goal of the season.
In a statement, the club said: “Chelsea Football Club is disgusted by the racial abuse directed towards Nicolas Jackson via social media, following Saturday evening’s game.
“There is no place in society for any form of discrimination and we operate a zero-tolerance approach to any incident of this nature.
“The club will support any criminal prosecutions and take the strongest possible action, including bans, against any individual who is found to be a season ticket holder or member.”
Defending the Senegal international’s record during his debut season – since signing for Chelsea from Villarreal – manager Mauricio Pochettino said: “Jackson is doing fantastic and he will always have my support.
“He’s doing an amazing job for the team: running, scoring, assists.
“It’s not easy in the first season. Nicolas fights for the club and he will be better next season, no doubts.”
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