Virgil van Dijk fumes over Liverpool's missed chances against Arsenal

Kai Havertz scored the decisive goal in the first half to give the champions all three points, despite Liverpool enjoying periods of pressure and creating several opportunities.

Florian Wirtz came close to rescuing a point when his curling free-kick struck the crossbar, but Liverpool could not find a way past Arsenal's defence.

"Disappointment. We played at home, we had some opportunities. Obviously we tried everything," Van Dijk told Sky Sports.

The Liverpool captain felt his team could have been more dangerous in the closing stages, particularly by delivering more balls into the penalty area.

"I think we could have maybe done a bit better towards the last 15 minutes of the game to get more balls in the box. But it wasn't enough today," he added.

Van Dijk also highlighted Liverpool's improved performance after conceding, pointing to a major opportunity for Alexis Mac Allister that could have changed the contest.

He was also unhappy that Liverpool were not awarded a penalty after Alexander Isak appeared to have his shirt pulled in the first half.

"I think it was also a clear penalty. I've seen it back, and I've seen it being given on other occasions, but today it wasn't meant to be," Van Dijk said.

Despite the disappointment, the defender believes Liverpool are making progress under their evolving team structure and that their performances will improve as the players become more familiar with each other.

"When someone new comes into the building and everything is changing, it just needs time. It just needs working together, going through difficult moments and good moments," he explained.

"I'm pretty sure that things will click and things will work out. Our fans can see there is so much improvement already over the last recent weeks, but we also work our socks off."

However, Van Dijk stressed that improved performances must be followed by results, particularly at Anfield, where Liverpool cannot afford to waste opportunities.

Liverpool will look to bounce back when they travel to Turkey to face Fenerbahce in the Champions League on Wednesday.

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