Dirk Kuyt has reacted to Jose Mourinho’s claims that Liverpool are in decline by suggesting it’s wrong to dwell on the past.
On Tuesday, the Real Madrid manager launched a clinical analysis on Roy Hodgson’s side as he said the Reds had got progressively worse during Rafa Benitez’s reign.
Kuyt, who has not won a major trophy in his four-year spell at Anfield, believes it’s foolish to look back on previous campaigns and the club needs to move forward.
“For me it’s all about the future,” Kuyt told The Daily Mirror.
“You can look back in the past and think about the things that went wrong and what we couldn’t achieve.
“But you must look to the future and I think that the future will be OK. We will work really hard to challenge for trophies.
“These days it’s more difficult because more and more clubs are trying to challenge for the top-four spot, but we will be there as well.
“We will be working really hard and maybe with one or two new players, everything will look much better.”
Kuyt has dismissed the critics who have written Liverpool off following their convincing 3-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City on Monday.
The midfielder is looking at Sunday’s game against West Brom as a match which could secure their first league win of the season.
“I know everyone has been thinking about our 3-0 defeat in Manchester, but one game doesn’t change things,” he said.
“We definitely want to win against West Brom and then we want to look forward. After West Brom, everyone goes with their national teams so it’s very important to get the three points and push on from there.”
Liverpool secured their place in the Europa League group stages with a win in Turkey against Trabzonspor on Thursday. They have been drawn alongside Napoli, Utrecht and Steaua Bucharest.
Kuyt is relishing another season in Europe and has dismissed the idea of the Europa League being a sub-standard competition.
“It’s always good to play in Europe and play some games in different places.” Kuyt said.
“This is important for everyone here. We need to be in there, playing in the group stages. The Europa League is getting better all the time and the teams lining up in it are really strong.
“As a Liverpool player, you know that you have got to play twice a week.
“Nothing else will do. When you have midweek games, it’s easier to prepare for the weekend. You get into a rhythm and I cannot see myself not playing in a midweek.
“Unfortunately we cannot be in the Champions League, but we have to forget about it and put everything we have into making the Europa League a success.”
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