🔗 Share this article

Just a couple of weeks ago, the Merseyside club appeared destined to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and possibly another Champions League trophy. Their ability to win without optimal performances seemed like the hallmark of true champions.

But, subsequently the tide turned. Liverpool continued with mediocre performances and started dropping matches. At the same time, Arsenal, renowned for their stubborn backline and strength in depth, started closing the distance at the top.

Understanding a Slump in Today's Game

Does three consecutive losses constitute a collapse? As with most football debates, it depends entirely on your interpretation of the central term. Was the United midfielder elite? What does "elite" even mean? Are Aston Villa a big club? What defines "major"? Is the Old Trafford outfit back? Alright, maybe that is one we might answer.

For a club of Liverpool's size and previous campaign's brilliance, a mini crisis seems a fair assessment. On a recent broadcast, former striker Neil Mellor was asked how many losses in a row would cause alarm. His reply was six. At present, they are midway to that particular threshold.

Identifying the Tactical Problems

There are obvious footballing problems. Integrating recent additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a different skill set to previous key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a difficulty. Likewise, incorporating a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly unbalanced the engine room. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a creative player who improves those beside him, connecting play effortlessly rather than forcing himself on the game.

Furthermore, a number of players who excelled last campaign—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now underperforming. Actually, most of the team is. Yet they all have one profound, fresh experience: the passing of their teammate and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Unseen Impact: Grief on the Pitch

We are now just more than three months since the tragic passing of their teammate. While the wider world progresses rapidly, shifting focus to other matters, the club's players carry on going to work each day without their mate.

It is not possible to gauge how every player and member of the backroom team is coping from one day to the next. It requires a significant amount of speculation. Maybe Salah didn't track back in a recent match because he lacked energy. Or perhaps his performance level is down a small per cent due to the fact he is grieving for his pal.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke eloquently before a recent, making a parallel to his personal situation of losing a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "The way they are doing this campaign is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after Jota's loss. I lived exactly the same experience when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It is difficult for the squad, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the coach when you come to the training complex and you see every day that place vacant. So you have to be incredibly resilient. And this is the explanation why for me they are doing not well, but exceptionally well. Because they are trying to deal with a situation that is not easy."

As explained well on a popular fan podcast, the reminders are ongoing. The players hear his song in the 20th minute, they see his unused peg in the dressing room. In the middle of matches, a through ball might be made and the thought arises: 'Oh, Diogo would have reached that.' If Salah showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it indicates that everything is far from normal.

The Limits of Punditry and Personal Grief

Having reporting on football for two decades, one realizes there is a fundamental superficiality in the majority of analysis. We simply cannot know how an individual is coping at any specific time and how that impacts their play. Jota's passing is one of the clearest illustrations. We know a tragic thing occurred, and we comprehend the concept of grief. Beyond that lies an immeasurable level of impact on different individuals at the club. It is highly likely that a few of the players personally do not truly understand its effect from one moment to the next.

The way the press reports on this and how fans dissect displays is obviously far from the primary thing. On a practical level, mentioning Jota's passing is challenging to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical issues. Outside of this specific tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem strange to qualify each criticism of a footballer with an acknowledgment that we know so little about their personal lives—be it their family relationships, personal struggles, or marital difficulties.

An ex- pro player, Nedum Onuoha, lately talked on a broadcast about how his mother's passing midway through his career impacted his passion for the game. "I didn't enjoy football as much," he said. "Some of the high points 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 Final Thought

Therefore, whatever Liverpool accomplish this season—if it's something or if it's nothing—whether or not we don't mention it every time we analyze their matches, and even if it is not the sole reason for their eventual result, we should not forget that a short time ago they lost not just a brilliant player, but, crucially, they lost a dear friend.