Jurgen Klopp maintained Liverpool “gave” Nottingham Forest all of their chances in the 1-0 loss at the City Ground.
Former Reds academy player Taiwo Awoniyi struck the only goal of the game, with Klopp’s side now 11 points off Premier League leaders Arsenal despite playing a game more.
And a week after defeating champions Manchester City, Klopp was unable to explain the performance and insisted his side deserved the three points.
“The performance I can explain, the result not,” Klopp told BT Sport. “I never saw a game where one team has, four or five no brainers from a set piece, we have to finish it off.
“The way they defend we were perfect for that, always a free player. Bobby in the first half, Virgil two times, three times? They have to put the game to bed to be 100 percent honest. The goal they concede, A big mistake from us, we lose the ball, give them a free-kick, this can happen around set-pieces.
“All the chances they had, we gave them, we played in the first half just too often the wrong passes in the centre, we didn't want to do that, but it happened anyway. It will not be a free flowing performance, it was pretty clear before the game, we had to make late changes and in general a lot of changes, a game you have to win, purely doing the right stuff again and again, we didn't, that's why we lost the game.
Klopp then bemoaned the intense schedule ahead of the World Cup and how stretched Liverpool have been left after late withdrawals for Darwin Nunez (hamstring) and Thiago Alcantara (ear infection).
“It had nothing to do with that [consistency],” Klopp added. “We had six days, a limited squad, playing three games, high intense games.
“The first one was City which was super intense, then you have to go full distance midweek, then Saturday again, that's just how it is, we can't change that. You have to fight through.
“That's what we do. Result wise, we should have shown consistency today but you cannot show consistency when there is no chance to show consistency with the players who can line up. But result wise we could have had it by finishing off the situations.”
