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Just a few weeks ago, Liverpool appeared set to claim back-to-back Premier League championships and potentially a further Champions League trophy. Their ability to secure victories despite not optimal displays felt like the mark of genuine champions.

However, subsequently the momentum turned. Liverpool continued with average showings and began losing matches. Meanwhile, Arsenal, renowned for their stubborn backline and squad depth, began closing the gap at the top.

Defining a Slump in Today's Game

Does a trio of straight defeats represent a collapse? Like most football debates, it depends entirely on your interpretation of the key word. Is Paul Scholes world class? What does "elite" actually signify? Are Aston Villa a big team? What constitutes "big"? Are Manchester United back? Alright, perhaps that is a question we might settle.

At a team of Liverpool's size and previous campaign's excellence, a minor setback appears a reasonable assessment. On a recent radio show, ex- forward Neil Mellor was asked how many losses in a row would cause panic. His answer was six. Currently, they are midway to that point.

Pinpointing the Tactical Issues

There are obvious footballing issues. Assimilating recent signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a distinct skill set to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Similarly, incorporating a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the midfield. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a creative player who improves those beside him, linking play effortlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Additionally, a host of players who shone last campaign—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently underperforming. In fact, the majority of the squad is. Yet every one of them have one significant, recent event: the tragic death of their teammate and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Effect: Grief on the Field

We are now just over three months since the tragic passing of their teammate. While the outside world progresses rapidly, diverting attention to other matters, Liverpool's squad continue training and playing day after day without their friend.

It is impossible to know how each player and staff member is coping on any given day. It requires a significant amount of projection. Perhaps Salah didn't track back in a recent match because he lacked energy. Or maybe his performance level is down a small per cent because he is grieving for his pal.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke insightfully before a recent, drawing a parallel to his personal situation of the loss of a teammate, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "The way they are performing this season is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after the tragedy. I went through exactly the same experience when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It is difficult for the players, it's not easy for the club, it's not easy for the coach when you arrive at the training ground and you see daily that place vacant. So you must be incredibly resilient. And this is the reason why for me they are doing not good, even better than good. Because they are attempting to deal with a situation that is not easy."

Just as explained succinctly on a popular fan podcast, the reminders are ongoing. The players hear his song in the first half, they notice his empty locker in the changing 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 matches ago, it indicates that everything is not all right.

The Limits of Punditry and Human Emotion

Having covering football for twenty years, one comes to believe there is a inherent superficiality in most punditry. We genuinely cannot know how an individual is feeling at any given time and how that affects their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest examples. We know a tragic event occurred, and we comprehend the concept of grief. Beyond that lies an intangible level of effect on various people at the organization. It is very possible that a few of the players personally do not fully grasp its effect from one moment to the next.

How the press covers this and how supporters dissect displays is obviously far from the primary factor. On a functional basis, bringing up Jota's passing is difficult to accomplish in a brief soundbite before moving on to on-field issues. Outside of this specific tragedy and outside Liverpool, it would seem strange to preface every critique of a player with an acknowledgment that we know so little about their private circumstances—be it their parental relationships, personal challenges, or relationship difficulties.

A former professional footballer, Nedum Onuoha, recently spoke on radio about how his mother's passing midway through his playing days affected his passion for the game. "I didn't enjoy football as much," he said. "The highs and the lows that accompany it no longer felt the same after that." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been just three months.

The Concluding Thought

Therefore, regardless of what Liverpool accomplish in the coming months—if it's something or if it's nothing—even if we don't mention it every time we discuss their fixtures, even if it isn't the reason for their final outcome, we should not forget that a few weeks ago they lost not just a exceptional player, but, crucially, they lost a friend.