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Just a couple of weeks ago, the Merseyside club seemed set to claim back-to-back Premier League championships and potentially a further Champions League trophy. The team's ability to win despite not optimal displays felt like the mark of true title-winners.

However, subsequently the tide turned. The Anfield side continued with average showings and started dropping points. Meanwhile, Arsenal, known for their resolute backline and squad depth, started narrowing the distance at the top.

Defining a Slump in Modern Football

Does three consecutive losses constitute a crisis? Like most football debates, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the key word. Is Paul Scholes elite? What does "world class" actually mean? Are Aston Villa a major club? What constitutes "big"? Are Manchester United back? Alright, maybe that is a question we can settle.

At a team of this club's stature and previous campaign's excellence, a mini setback seems a reasonable assessment. On a recent broadcast, former striker Neil Mellor was asked how many defeats in a row would trigger alarm. His reply was six. Currently, they are halfway to that particular point.

Identifying the On-Pitch Problems

One can observe clear tactical problems. Integrating recent signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a different skill set to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, presents a difficulty. Likewise, blending in a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the midfield. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a creative talent who elevates those beside him, linking play seamlessly rather than forcing himself on the game.

Additionally, a host of players who excelled last season—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently underperforming. Actually, the majority of the team is. Yet they all have one significant, recent experience: the passing of their teammate and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Impact: Grief on the Pitch

We are now just over three short months since the tragic loss of their teammate. While the wider world moves on quickly, diverting focus to other events, the club's players carry on training and playing day after day without their mate.

This is not possible to gauge how each individual and member of the backroom team is dealing on any given day. It requires a significant amount of projection. Maybe Salah didn't track back in a particular match because he lacked energy. But perhaps his form is down a few per cent because he misses his pal.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented eloquently before a recent, making a comparison to his own situation of the loss of a teammate, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "How they are doing this season is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after the tragedy. I went through exactly the same thing when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It is difficult for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the coach when you come to the training complex and you see daily that place vacant. So you must be very strong. And this is the explanation why for me they are doing not well, even better than good. Because they are attempting to deal with a problem that is not easy."

Just as summarized well on a well-known fan podcast, the memory triggers are constant. They are reminded by his song in the first half, they notice his empty locker in the dressing room. In the middle of games, a through ball might be made and the realization arises: 'Ah, Diogo would have reached that.' If Salah was seen crying in front of the Kop a few games ago, it indicates that everything is not all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Personal Grief

After covering football for two decades, one comes to believe there is a fundamental superficiality in most punditry. We simply do not know how an player is feeling at any given moment and how that impacts their play. Jota's passing is one of the most stark examples. We are aware a terrible event happened, and we understand the concept of sorrow. Beyond that lies an immeasurable layer of effect on different people at the organization. It is very possible that some of the players personally don't truly grasp its influence from one moment to the next.

The way the press covers this and how supporters dissect performances is clearly far from the primary thing. On a functional basis, mentioning Jota's passing is challenging to do in a brief segment before moving on to on-field concerns. Beyond this specific tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem strange to preface every critique of a player with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their family relationships, personal challenges, or marital difficulties.

A former professional footballer, the defender, recently spoke on radio about how his mother's death halfway through his playing days 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 only three months.

The Concluding Thought

Therefore, whatever Liverpool accomplish in the coming months—if it's something or failure—even if we don't mention it whenever we discuss their matches, even if it isn't the reason for their final result, we should not forget that a short time ago they suffered the loss of not just a exceptional footballer, but, more importantly, they said goodbye to a dear friend.