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Just a few weeks back, Liverpool seemed set to claim back-to-back Premier League titles and possibly a further Champions League crown. The team's ability to secure victories despite not peak performances felt like the mark of genuine champions.

However, subsequently the momentum turned. The Anfield side continued with average performances and started losing points. At the same time, the North London club, known for their stubborn backline and squad depth, began narrowing the gap at the summit.

Defining a Slump in Modern Football

Does three consecutive defeats constitute a collapse? As with most football debates, it depends completely on your definition of the central term. Was the United midfielder elite? What does "elite" actually mean? Are Aston Villa a major team? What defines "major"? Is the Old Trafford outfit returned to prominence? Alright, maybe that's one we can answer.

For a club of Liverpool's stature and last season's excellence, a minor setback seems a reasonable description. During a radio show, ex- striker Neil Mellor was asked how many defeats in a row would cause panic. His reply was six. Currently, they are halfway to that threshold.

Pinpointing the Tactical Issues

One can observe obvious footballing problems. Integrating new signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a different style to departed stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, presents a difficulty. Likewise, incorporating a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly unbalanced the engine room. Experts of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative player who elevates those around him, linking play seamlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Furthermore, 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 team is. And every one of them have one significant, fresh event: the passing of their colleague and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Unseen Effect: Grief on the Pitch

We are now just more than three short months since the devastating passing of their teammate. Although the wider world moves on rapidly, shifting attention to global events, the club's players carry on training and playing each day in the absence of their mate.

This is impossible to gauge how each individual and staff member is coping from one day to the next. It requires a great deal of projection. Maybe Salah didn't track back in a particular match because he was tired. Or maybe his performance level is down a small per cent because he is grieving for his friend.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke eloquently before a fixture, making a comparison to his personal experience of the loss of a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "How they are performing this campaign 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's not easy for the squad, it's not easy for the club, it's not easy for the manager when you come to the training complex and you find every day that spot vacant. So you must be incredibly resilient. And this is the reason why for me they are doing not good, but exceptionally well. Because they are trying to handle a situation that is not easy."

Just as explained well on a well-known supporter's show, the memory triggers are ongoing. They are reminded by his chant in the first half, they see his empty peg in the changing room. In the middle of matches, a pass might be played and the realization arises: 'Ah, Diogo would have reached that.' If Salah showed emotion in front of the Kop a few games ago, it indicates that everything is not all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Personal Grief

Having covering football for two decades, one realizes there is a fundamental lack of depth in the majority of analysis. We genuinely do not know how an individual is coping at any given time and how that affects their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest illustrations. We are aware a tragic thing happened, and we comprehend the concept of sorrow. Beyond that lies an immeasurable layer of effect on various individuals at the club. It is very possible that a few of the squad themselves don't fully grasp its effect from one day to the next.

How the media reports on this and how fans dissect displays is clearly far from the primary thing. On a practical basis, bringing up Jota's passing is difficult to do in a brief segment before moving on to on-field concerns. Beyond this particular event and outside Liverpool, it would seem strange to qualify each criticism of a player with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their parental situation, health struggles, or relationship difficulties.

A former professional player, the defender, lately talked on radio about how his mother's death halfway through his career affected his love for the game. "I didn't enjoy football as much," he stated. "The high points and the low points that accompany it no longer felt 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

So, whatever Liverpool accomplish in the coming months—if it's something or if it's nothing—even if we don't mention it whenever we analyze their matches, even if it is not the sole cause for their eventual result, we should not forget that a few weeks ago they lost not merely a brilliant footballer, but, crucially, they lost a dear friend.