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Just a couple of weeks ago, Liverpool appeared set to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and potentially another Champions League trophy. Their capacity to secure victories despite not peak displays felt like the hallmark of true champions.

But, then the momentum turned. The Anfield side continued with mediocre showings and started losing matches. Meanwhile, the North London club, known for their resolute defense and strength in depth, began closing the distance at the summit.

Defining a Slump in Modern Football

Can a trio of consecutive defeats constitute a collapse? As with most sporting discussions, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the key word. Was the United midfielder world class? What does "world class" actually signify? Are Aston Villa a big team? What constitutes "major"? Are Manchester United returned to prominence? Alright, perhaps that is one we might settle.

For a club of this club's size and last season's excellence, a mini crisis seems a reasonable assessment. On a recent radio show, ex- striker Neil Mellor was questioned how many defeats in a row would trigger alarm. His answer was six. Currently, they are midway to that particular point.

Identifying the On-Pitch Problems

One can observe obvious footballing problems. Integrating recent signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a different skill set to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Similarly, blending in a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the midfield. Observers of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative talent who improves those around him, linking play seamlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Furthermore, a host of players who excelled last campaign—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now underperforming. Actually, most of the team is. Yet every one of them have one significant, fresh event: the passing of their colleague 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 wider world moves on quickly, diverting attention to other matters, Liverpool's squad carry on going to work each day in the absence of their friend.

This is not possible to gauge how every player and staff member is dealing on any given day. There is a significant amount of speculation. Maybe Salah failed to defend in a particular match simply he lacked energy. Or maybe his performance level is down a few per cent due to the fact he misses his pal.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented insightfully before a fixture, making a parallel to his personal situation of losing a teammate, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "The way they are performing this season is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after Jota's tragedy. I lived a very similar experience when I was a player two decades past."

"It's not easy for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the manager when you come to the training ground and you see every day that place vacant. So you have to be incredibly resilient. And this is the reason why for me they are doing not well, even better than good. Because they are trying to handle a problem that is not easy."

Just as summarized well on a popular fan podcast, the memory triggers are ongoing. They hear his song in the first half, they see his unused locker in the dressing room. Even during matches, a pass might be played and the realization arises: 'Oh, Diogo would have been there.' When the Egyptian showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it indicates that all is far from all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Human Emotion

After covering football for two decades, one comes to believe there is a fundamental superficiality in most punditry. We genuinely do not know how an individual is feeling at any specific time and how that affects their performance. Jota's passing is one of the most stark examples. We know a terrible event occurred, and we understand the concept of grief. But further lies an immeasurable level of effect on different individuals at the organization. It is highly likely that a few of the players themselves do not fully grasp its influence from one day to the next.

The way the media reports on this and how fans dissect displays is clearly far from the primary factor. On a functional level, mentioning Jota's passing is difficult to do in a brief soundbite before moving on to tactical concerns. Beyond this specific tragedy and outside Liverpool, it would seem strange to preface every critique of a player with an admission that we know so little about their private circumstances—be it their family relationships, health challenges, or relationship problems.

An ex- professional player, Nedum Onuoha, recently spoke on radio about how his mother's passing halfway through his playing days affected his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he said. "The highs and the lows that accompany it didn't really feel the same after that." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been just three months.

The Concluding Point

So, regardless of what Liverpool accomplish this season—be it success or if it's nothing—even if we omit reference to it every time we discuss their matches, even if it is not the sole cause for their eventual result, we should not forget that a short time ago they lost not merely a brilliant footballer, but, more importantly, they lost a friend.