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Only a few weeks back, the Merseyside club seemed destined to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and potentially another Champions League crown. Their ability to win despite not optimal performances seemed like the hallmark of true champions.

But, subsequently the tide turned. Liverpool persisted with average showings and began dropping points. Meanwhile, Arsenal, known for their resolute defense and strength in depth, began closing the gap at the summit.

Understanding a Slump in Modern Football

Can three straight defeats represent a collapse? Like most football debates, it hinges entirely on your definition of the central word. Is Paul Scholes elite? How do you define "elite" even mean? Is the Birmingham club a big team? What defines "big"? Are Manchester United back? Well, maybe that is a question we might settle.

For a club of this club's stature and previous campaign's excellence, a mini crisis seems a reasonable assessment. During a radio show, ex- forward Neil Mellor was asked how many defeats in a row would trigger alarm. His answer was six. At present, they are midway to that particular threshold.

Identifying the Tactical Issues

One can observe clear footballing problems. Assimilating new signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a distinct skill set to previous key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, presents a difficulty. Likewise, blending in a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the midfield. Experts of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a technical talent who improves those around him, connecting play seamlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Additionally, a number of players who shone last season—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently below their best. In fact, the majority of the squad are. And every one of them have one profound, recent experience: the passing of their teammate and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Impact: Loss on the Field

It has been just over three short months since the devastating loss of their friend. While the outside world progresses rapidly, shifting attention to other matters, the club's players continue training and playing day after day in the absence of their mate.

This is impossible to gauge how every player and staff member is dealing on any given day. It requires a significant amount of projection. Perhaps Salah failed to defend in a particular match simply he lacked energy. But perhaps his performance level is down a small percentage points because he misses his friend.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke eloquently before a recent, drawing a comparison to his own situation of the loss of a teammate, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "How they are performing this season is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's tragedy. I went through a very similar experience when I was a player two decades past."

"It's not easy for the squad, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the coach when you arrive at the training ground and you see every day that place empty. So you must be incredibly resilient. And this is the explanation why for me they are performing not well, even better than good. Because they are attempting to deal with a situation that is not easy."

Just as summarized succinctly on a well-known fan podcast, the reminders are ongoing. They are reminded by his chant in the 20th minute, they notice his empty peg in the changing room. In the middle of matches, a pass might be played and the thought arises: 'Ah, Jota would have been there.' If Salah was seen crying in front of the Kop a matches ago, it signals that all is not normal.

The Limits of Punditry and Personal Grief

After covering football for two decades, one comes to believe there is a inherent lack of depth in the majority of analysis. We simply cannot know how an individual is feeling at any specific time and how that affects their play. Jota's death is one of the most stark examples. We know a terrible event happened, and we comprehend the concept of sorrow. But further lies an immeasurable layer of impact on different individuals at the organization. It is very possible that some of the squad personally don't fully grasp its effect from one moment to the next.

The way the press reports on this and how fans dissect performances is clearly far from the primary factor. On a functional basis, bringing up Jota's death is challenging to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical concerns. Beyond this specific event and beyond Liverpool, it would seem strange to qualify each criticism of a footballer with an admission that we know so little about their private circumstances—be it their parental relationships, personal challenges, or relationship difficulties.

A former professional footballer, the defender, recently spoke on a broadcast about how his mother's passing halfway through his career impacted his love for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he said. "The highs and the low points that accompany it no longer felt the same any more." And that was half a career; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been just three short months.

The Final Point

Therefore, regardless of what Liverpool accomplish this season—be it success or if it's nothing—whether or not we omit reference to it every time we discuss their matches, even if it isn't the cause for their eventual outcome, we must remember that a few weeks ago they lost not just a exceptional player, but, crucially, they said goodbye to a friend.