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Only a couple of weeks back, the Merseyside club seemed destined to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and possibly a further Champions League crown. The team's ability to win despite not peak performances seemed like the hallmark of genuine title-winners.

But, then the momentum shifted. The Anfield side continued with average showings and started dropping matches. Meanwhile, the North London club, renowned for their resolute backline and strength in depth, began closing the distance at the top.

Understanding a Slump in Today's Game

Can a trio of straight losses constitute a crisis? As with many sporting discussions, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the key term. Was the United midfielder elite? What does "elite" even signify? Is the Birmingham club a major team? What defines "big"? Is the Old Trafford outfit returned to prominence? Alright, maybe that is a question we might settle.

At a team of Liverpool's stature and last season's excellence, a mini crisis seems a reasonable assessment. During a broadcast, ex- forward Neil Mellor was questioned how many losses in a row would trigger alarm. His answer was six. At present, they are halfway to that particular point.

Identifying the On-Pitch Issues

One can observe obvious footballing issues. Integrating recent additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a different style to departed 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. Observers of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a technical player who improves those beside him, linking play effortlessly rather than forcing himself on the game.

Furthermore, a number of individuals who excelled last season—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently below their best. Actually, the majority of the team are. And they all have one profound, recent event: the passing of their teammate and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Effect: Loss on the Pitch

It has been just over three short months since the tragic loss of their friend. Although the wider world moves on quickly, diverting focus to global events, Liverpool's squad continue training and playing each day without their mate.

It is impossible to gauge how every player and member of the backroom team is coping on any given day. It requires a great deal of speculation. Perhaps Salah didn't track back in a particular match simply he was tired. But maybe his performance level is down a few percentage points because he misses his friend.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented insightfully before a fixture, making a comparison to his personal situation of the loss of a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "How they are performing this campaign is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's tragedy. I went through a very similar experience when I was a player two decades past."

"It is difficult 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 have to be incredibly resilient. And this is the explanation why for me they are performing not well, even better than good. Because they are attempting to deal with a situation that is not easy."

Just as explained well on a well-known fan podcast, the reminders are constant. The players are reminded by his song in the first half, they see his unused peg in the changing room. Even during matches, a through ball might be played and the realization arises: 'Oh, Jota would have been there.' If Salah showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it signals that everything is far from all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Personal Grief

Having reporting on 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 feeling at any specific moment and how that affects their performance. Jota's passing is one of the clearest examples. We are aware a terrible thing happened, and we comprehend the nature of grief. But further lies an intangible layer of effect on different individuals at the organization. It is highly likely that a few of the squad personally don't truly grasp its effect from one day to the next.

How the media reports on this and how fans dissect performances is obviously far from the primary factor. On a practical basis, mentioning Jota's passing is challenging to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical issues. Outside of this particular tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to preface every critique of a player with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their family situation, health challenges, or relationship problems.

An ex- pro player, the defender, recently talked on a broadcast about how his mother's death midway through his playing days affected his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he said. "The high points and the lows that accompany it didn't really feel the same any more." And that was half a career; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been only three short months.

The Final 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 analyze their matches, and even if it is not the sole reason for their final result, we must remember that a few weeks ago they suffered the loss of not just a brilliant player, but, more importantly, they said goodbye to a friend.