Van Dijk issues defensive warning after Fenerbahçe defeat: "This is not sustainable"

Virgil van Dijk says Liverpool's defence must put things right after the Champions League defeat to Fenerbahçe, describing the errors as "not sustainable".

The English giants lost 3-2 to the Yellow-Navies at the Chobani Stadyumu Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Spor Kompleksi in a match they had led twice.

Liverpool went ahead through Trey Nyoni in the 25th minute, but Fenerbahçe responded quickly when a Mason Greenwood free-kick deflected in off Jérémy Jacquet. Just three minutes after coming on for Víctor Muñoz, Alexander Isak put Liverpool back in front. But Archie Brown restored parity after a goalmouth scramble from a set piece, turning in the ball Cody Gakpo had headed across to the far post.

The goal that completed Fenerbahçe's comeback arrived in the 79th minute. Rising between three opponents in the box to meet Brown's cross, Vedat Muriqi made it 3-2 with a fine header to seal the win.

The result means Liverpool have conceded three set-piece goals in a single match for only the second time in their Champions League history (after the 3-3 draw with Sevilla in November 2017). However, the match against Fenerbahçe was the first in which the English side conceded three goals from set pieces other than penalties.

Having shipped 10 goals in four Champions League matches this season, Liverpool have now conceded three goals in each of their last three European fixtures (6-3 against LASK, 4-3 against Villarreal, 2-3 against Fenerbahçe). It is the first time in the club's history that they have conceded three or more goals in three consecutive matches in major European competition.

Pointing to the defensive frailties, Van Dijk said: "This is definitely not sustainable. We are hugely disappointed for many reasons, but especially the goals we conceded and the way we conceded them are unacceptable. There is a lot we need to work on."

The Dutch centre-back added: "Three set-piece goals again... We have been pretty good in that area this season, but we switched off; we weren't ready for the first and second balls. It's a really hard defeat to take."

The defeat to Fenerbahçe was only the third match in Liverpool's major European history in which they have led twice and lost (after the 4-2 defeat to Roma in May 2018 and the 3-2 defeat to PSV in January 2025). Having gone ahead in the 69th minute, the Reds also suffered the first defeat in their European history in a match they had led so late on.

Liverpool, whose five-match winning run in all competitions was ended by a 1-0 Premier League defeat to Arsenal, travel to Crystal Palace this weekend. Van Dijk believes the team will learn from this difficult experience before the international break:

"I said it after the Arsenal game too; as a team we have to go through difficult moments like this as well as the good ones. It will only strengthen the bond between us. Nobody wants to lose a match, especially not like this. But this experience has to help us."