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Just a couple of weeks ago, the Merseyside club appeared destined to claim back-to-back Premier League titles and potentially another Champions League crown. Their ability to secure victories without optimal displays felt like the mark of genuine title-winners.

However, subsequently the momentum turned. The Anfield side continued with mediocre performances and began dropping points. Meanwhile, Arsenal, renowned for their stubborn backline and strength in depth, began closing the distance at the top.

Defining a Slump in Today's Game

Does three straight defeats represent a collapse? As with most football debates, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the key term. Is Paul Scholes elite? What does "elite" even mean? Is the Birmingham club a major club? What defines "big"? Are Manchester United back? Well, maybe that is one we can answer.

At a team of this club's size and last season's brilliance, a mini crisis seems a reasonable description. During a radio show, ex- striker Neil Mellor was questioned how many defeats in a row would cause panic. His reply was six. Currently, they are halfway to that particular threshold.

Identifying the Tactical Issues

One can observe clear footballing issues. Assimilating recent additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a distinct style to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Similarly, blending in a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly unbalanced the engine room. Experts of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative talent who elevates those beside him, linking play seamlessly rather than imposing himself on the game.

Furthermore, a number of players who shone last season—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now underperforming. In fact, the majority of the squad are. And they all have one significant, recent event: the passing of their teammate and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Effect: Grief on the Field

We are now just more than three short months since the devastating loss of their friend. Although the outside world moves on rapidly, diverting focus to other events, Liverpool's players carry on going to work each day in the absence of their mate.

It is impossible to gauge how every player and member of the backroom team is dealing from one day to the next. There is a significant amount of speculation. Maybe Salah failed to defend in a particular match simply he lacked energy. Or maybe his form is down a few percentage points due to the fact he is grieving for his pal.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented eloquently before a fixture, drawing a comparison to his own experience of losing a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "How they are performing this campaign is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's tragedy. I lived exactly the same thing when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It's not easy for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the manager when you arrive at the training ground and you find daily that spot vacant. So you must be very strong. And this is the reason why for me they are doing not well, even better than good. Because they are trying to deal with a situation that is not easy."

Just as summarized well on a well-known fan podcast, the reminders are ongoing. They hear his chant in the 20th minute, they see his empty peg in the dressing room. Even during games, a through ball might be made and the thought arises: 'Ah, Diogo would have been there.' If Salah was seen crying in front of the Kop a matches ago, it indicates that all is not normal.

The Boundaries of Football Analysis and Human Emotion

Having covering football for twenty years, one comes to believe there is a fundamental superficiality in most punditry. We simply do not know how an player is feeling at any specific moment and how that impacts their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest examples. We are aware a terrible event occurred, and we understand the nature of grief. Beyond that lies an immeasurable level of impact on various individuals at the club. It is highly likely that some of the squad personally don't truly grasp its effect from one moment to the next.

The way the press covers this and how supporters analyze performances is obviously not the most important factor. On a functional level, bringing up Jota's passing is difficult to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical concerns. Beyond this particular event and outside Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to preface every critique of a player with an admission that we know so little about their personal lives—be it their parental situation, personal struggles, or marital difficulties.

A former pro player, the defender, recently spoke on a broadcast about how his mother's passing midway through his playing days affected his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he stated. "Some of the high points and the low points that accompany it didn't really feel the same any more." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been just three short months.

The Concluding Thought

Therefore, regardless of what Liverpool achieve in the coming months—be it success or failure—whether or not we omit reference to it every time we analyze their fixtures, and even if it isn't the reason for their final outcome, we must remember that a few weeks ago they lost not merely a brilliant player, but, crucially, they lost a friend.