Liverpool star Thiago Alcantara urged his team-mates to raise their game after being held to a 0-0 draw by Manchester United on Sunday .
The Reds failed to win in the Premier League for a fourth consecutive match as they drew against their arch-rivals at Anfield.
That run has seen them lose ground at the top, with United sitting two points clear of Leicester City in first place and Jurgen Klopp's men a further point back in third.
Thiago finally made his Anfield bow on Sunday after an injury-affected debut season, but he acknowledged that he and his team-mates must improve if they wish to defend their Premier League title.
"Without winning, we are never satisfied. We made a superb first half, then the second half was 50-50," the ex-Barcelona and Bayern Munich midfielder explained to Liverpool's official website after the final whistle.
"We are happy in some way with our performance – how we did in some moments of the game – but we have to do much better to be on top of the league.
"We were intense, we were creating the chances that made us closer to winning. When we didn’t realise and didn’t make the goals, we’re just getting our self-confidence a bit down and that’s why the game changed a bit. At the end, it’s football and in some minutes of the game you are in high emotions and sometimes you are low – it’s part of the game.
"At the end, we have the privilege to play football, to keep having our work, our love: that is playing football here. And we have to defend the desire of the people to be here. We have to play for them because it’s a hard moment for all of us. For sure, with fans everything is different."
At the root of Liverpool's recent struggles has been a loss of form in front of the net, with the club still waiting for their first league goal of 2021 after going three games without scoring .
Thiago, though, is in no doubt that the goals will soon start flowing again.
"Look at the guys we have in front – not just the big three, let’s say that," he added.
"We have Div [Origi], we have Shaq [Xherdan Shaqiri], we have Taki [Takumi Minamino], we have many players that can score, people in the midfield that can score as well, people from the defence can score. It’s a matter of creating the chances that we are creating to be effective."
Liverpool are back in action on Thursday, when Burnley visit Anfield.
