Trent Alexander-Arnold has promised Liverpool fans the team will "do better" after their 3-0 loss to Brighton at the Amex on Saturday afternoon.
Jurgen Klopp's were humbled by the Seagulls thanks to Solly March's brace and Danny Welbeck's goal. The result leaves Liverpool ninth in the Premier League table - seven points behind Newcastle in fourth. They are also below Fulham, Brighton and Brentford.
Liverpool have conceded 25 goals in the Premier League this season - the same amount as West Ham, who are currently occupying the relegation zone. Alexander-Arnold's defending has been particularly scrutinised, but he's determined to prove his critics wrong.
Alexander-Arnold, 24, tweeted after Liverpool's defeat to Brighton: "This isn't good enough. We need to do better, and we will."
Liverpool have won just eight of their 18 Premier League fixtures this season. They are closer to West Ham in 18th (13 points ahead) than leaders Arsenal (16 points behind) in the table. The Gunners also have a game in hand on Alexander-Arnold and his team-mates.
Jamie Carragher was among those to criticise Liverpool's defending after their latest defeat. He tweeted on Saturday afternoon: "Liverpool are as bad defensively as anyone in the Premier League right now. Fortunately, they have the best 'keeper [Alisson], which means they aren't further down the table."
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Alexander-Arnold is under pressure to improve his defensive skills after facing criticism on several occasions this season. In October, Jamie O'Hara described the England international as a "League One" defender who is " Champions League going forward".
Alexander-Arnold does have an impressive record when it comes to creating chances, as he's scored 11 goals and provided 46 assists in his 179 Premier League appearances. Yet the Liverpool star knows he has to deliver defensively to silence his critics.
"I enjoy that responsibility of having to do two jobs at once," Alexander-Arnold told Sky Sports ahead of the Brighton loss. "To be someone who creates chances, gets assists and makes things happen, but also someone who prevents things from happening.
"First and foremost, the job on the pitch, as a defender, is to keep a clean sheet and defend, so that's always what I'm going to be focused on, no matter what. The other side of it is that we have a lot of the ball as a team, so when we have it, I try to create chances, try to help the team score goals. I enjoy that responsibility. I don't hide away from that at all."
Liverpool fans will be concerned by the Brighton defeat. It's arguably their worst loss under Klopp since he was appointed in October 2015. He told Match of the Day at full-time: "Bad, really bad. I can't remember a worse game. It's not difficult maybe."
When asked if he's concerned, Klopp said: "Yeah, how can you not be after a game like this? I cannot stand here and say it didn't happen. Of course, we have to be very concerned about it."
