Liverpool's Spanish coach Andoni Iraola called for a "more comprehensive" outlook, after the two successive defeats against Arsenal and Turkish Fenerbahce reduced the positive atmosphere that prevailed at Anfield.
The Reds' 0-1 loss to Arsenal last week left the team nine points behind the English Premier League leaders, before Liverpool suffered its first defeat this season in the Champions League three days later during their match in Turkey.
Iraola, who is in his first season at the helm of Liverpool's coaching staff, admitted that the two defeats had a painful impact, as his team prepares to face struggling Crystal Palace on Sunday.
The Spanish coach told reporters on Friday: “A week ago, during this press conference, we were achieving a series of good results, and everything was going excellently and our morale was better.”
He added: “But now, after two defeats, the situation has changed, and it is natural that it will change. It should be like this in clubs like ours. Now we have to respond. “After two defeats, we need to win away to Crystal Palace.”
Iraola pointed out that periods of ups and downs are inevitable at this early stage of his coaching period, after he succeeded the Dutchman Arne Sloat in June.
The former Bournemouth coach continued: “When we lose a match, everyone gets angry, but we have to look at things from a more comprehensive perspective, and we realize that during this journey there will be periods of ups and downs.”
He continued: “We are not as bad as our situation may seem today, and we were not as good as our situation seemed a week ago. We have to look at things from a broader perspective. “This is also part of the challenge I face regarding the morale of the group.”
Jorge Jesus, coach of the Portuguese national team, confirmed that he did not expect Cristiano Ronaldo to retire from international football, despite the public dispute that broke out between them recently.
“I thought he would return, and I certainly had the intention of calling him up,” Jesus said, while announcing the national team’s roster for the European Nations League, on Friday, one day after Ronaldo announced the end of his long and distinguished career with his country’s national team.
He added: “He felt that this was the right moment to leave, and his decision must be respected.” “We can never lose sight of what he has given to Portugal, his contributions to the country, or the fact that he is an icon for young players.”
Ronaldo's last appearance in a Portugal shirt was on September 24, during the match that ended with Portugal's victory over Wales, 1-0, in the European Nations League.
British police arrested Ammar Didic, a defender of the English football team Newcastle United, after he was spotted carrying a bow and arrows in one of the picturesque natural sites in Northumberland County, according to news reports, on Friday.
The 24-year-old Bosnian international player was accompanied by one of his friends in a car when the police stopped them, after a citizen reported the matter to the authorities, according to the official website of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
Reports indicate that six police vehicles, including armed units, were dispatched and Dedic and his companion were intercepted about 7 miles from the location where the two were first seen.
The police searched the car and confiscated the bow and arrows, but concluded that the two men did not pose any threat to the public.
Sources told BBC Sport that Dedic did not have any bad intentions, and that he expressed full cooperation with the police.
Reports also indicated that Newcastle goalkeeper Mark Gillespie, 34, and former defender Paul Dummett, 35, arrived at the scene while police were speaking with Didic.
It is likely that Gillespie and Dummett's presence in the area was pure coincidence, and that they stopped to offer assistance.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, two days after Didic, who joined Newcastle from Portuguese club Benfica in a deal worth about 30 million pounds last August, participated in the match that Newcastle lost 0-1 to its guest Everton.
There was no comment from Newcastle, which currently occupies thirteenth place in the English Premier League standings with 11 points from 9 matches.
For its part, Northumbria Police issued a statement confirming that investigations are still ongoing, without explicitly mentioning Didic's name.
Newcastle is scheduled to play its host Fulham, on Saturday, in the tenth stage of the prestigious competition, before the international break this month.
It is noteworthy that Dedic, who has participated in 10 matches in the English Premier League and League Cup since joining Newcastle, was selected in the Bosnia and Herzegovina team to face Sweden away from home on November 14, and Romania at home on the 17th of the same month, in the European Nations League competitions.
