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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 a further Champions League trophy. Their capacity to secure victories despite not optimal performances felt like the mark of genuine title-winners.

But, subsequently the tide shifted. The Anfield side continued with average performances and started losing matches. Meanwhile, Arsenal, known for their resolute defense and strength in depth, began closing the distance at the top.

Defining a Crisis in Modern Football

Does three consecutive defeats constitute a collapse? Like most sporting discussions, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the central word. Was the United midfielder world class? How do you define "world class" even mean? Is the Birmingham club a big club? What defines "major"? Is the Old Trafford outfit returned to prominence? Well, maybe that is a question we might answer.

For a club of Liverpool's size and last season's brilliance, a minor crisis appears a fair description. On a recent radio show, former forward Neil Mellor was questioned how many losses in a row would trigger alarm. His reply was six. At present, they are midway to that point.

Pinpointing the Tactical Problems

There are clear tactical issues. Integrating new additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a distinct skill set to previous key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Likewise, blending in a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the engine room. Experts of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative player who improves those around him, linking play effortlessly rather than imposing himself upon the game.

Additionally, a host of individuals who excelled last season—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now underperforming. Actually, the majority of the squad are. Yet they all share one profound, recent event: the tragic death of their colleague and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Effect: Grief on the Field

It has been just over three short months since the tragic loss of their teammate. While the outside world progresses quickly, shifting focus to other events, the club's players continue training and playing each day in the absence of their friend.

This is impossible to gauge how each individual and staff member is dealing from one day to the next. There is a significant amount of speculation. Perhaps Salah didn't track back in a recent match because he lacked energy. Or maybe his performance level is down a few per cent because he is grieving for his pal.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke insightfully before a recent, making a parallel to his personal experience of the loss of a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "The way they are performing this season is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after the loss. I went through a very similar 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 manager when you arrive at the training ground and you see every day that spot vacant. So you have to be incredibly resilient. And this is the explanation why for me they are doing not well, even better than good. Because they are attempting to handle a situation that is not easy."

Just as explained well on a popular supporter's show, the memory triggers are ongoing. The players 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 thought arises: 'Ah, Jota would have been there.' If Salah was seen crying in front of the Kop a matches ago, it indicates that everything is far from all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Human Emotion

Having covering football for twenty years, one comes to believe there is a fundamental lack of depth in most punditry. We genuinely do not know how an player is coping at any specific moment and how that affects their performance. Jota's passing is one of the most stark examples. We are aware a tragic thing occurred, and we comprehend the nature of sorrow. Beyond that lies an intangible level of impact on various individuals at the organization. It is very possible that some of the squad personally don't truly understand its influence from one moment to the next.

The way the media reports on this and how supporters dissect displays is clearly far from the primary thing. On a practical level, mentioning Jota's passing is difficult to do in a short segment before moving on to tactical issues. Beyond this particular tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to preface each critique of a footballer with an acknowledgment that we are largely ignorant about their private circumstances—be it their parental situation, health challenges, or relationship problems.

A former professional player, Nedum Onuoha, 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 stated. "Some of 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 only three short months.

The Concluding Thought

So, whatever Liverpool achieve in the coming months—be it success or failure—whether or not we omit reference to it whenever we analyze their fixtures, and even if it is not the sole reason for their eventual outcome, we must remember that a few weeks ago they lost not merely a brilliant player, but, more importantly, they lost a friend.