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Just a few weeks ago, Liverpool seemed set to claim back-to-back Premier League titles and possibly another Champions League crown. Their capacity to win despite not peak displays felt like the mark of true title-winners.

But, then the momentum shifted. The Anfield side continued with average performances and started losing matches. At the same time, the North London club, known for their resolute defense and squad depth, started narrowing the gap at the top.

Understanding a Crisis in Today's Game

Can a trio of consecutive defeats represent a collapse? As with many sporting discussions, it hinges completely on your definition of the key word. Was the United midfielder world class? How do you define "elite" actually mean? Is the Birmingham club a big team? What constitutes "big"? Are Manchester United back? Alright, perhaps that is one we might settle.

For a club of Liverpool's stature and last season's brilliance, a mini setback seems a fair assessment. During a broadcast, ex- striker Neil Mellor was questioned how many defeats in a row would cause alarm. His answer was six. At present, they are halfway to that threshold.

Identifying the Tactical Issues

There are clear footballing problems. Integrating new additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a distinct style to departed key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Similarly, incorporating a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the engine room. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a technical talent who elevates those around him, connecting play seamlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Additionally, a host of players who excelled last campaign—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now below their best. In fact, the majority of the team is. And they all share one profound, recent 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 outside world moves on quickly, shifting focus to global events, Liverpool's squad carry on training and playing each day in the absence of their friend.

It is not possible to know how each player and member of the backroom team is coping from one day to the next. It requires a great deal of projection. Perhaps Salah failed to defend in a recent match because he was tired. Or maybe his performance level is down a few per cent because he is grieving for his friend.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented insightfully before a recent, making a comparison to his own situation of losing a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "How they are performing this season is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after Jota's tragedy. I lived exactly the same thing when I was a player two decades past."

"It is difficult for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the coach when you come to the training ground and you find every day that spot empty. So you have to be very strong. And this is the reason 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."

As summarized well on a popular supporter's show, the reminders are ongoing. The players hear his song in the 20th minute, they see his empty peg in the dressing room. In the middle of matches, a through ball might be played and the realization arises: 'Oh, Jota would have reached that.' When the Egyptian showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it signals that all is not all right.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Personal Grief

After covering football for two decades, one comes to believe there is a fundamental superficiality in the majority of analysis. We genuinely cannot know how an individual is feeling at any given time and how that impacts their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest illustrations. We know a tragic thing occurred, and we comprehend the nature of sorrow. Beyond that lies an immeasurable level of impact on various people at the organization. It is highly likely that a few of the squad personally do not fully grasp its effect from one moment to the next.

The way the press covers this and how supporters analyze displays is clearly not the most important thing. On a practical basis, mentioning Jota's death is challenging to accomplish in a short segment before moving on to on-field concerns. Beyond this particular event and outside Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to qualify every criticism of a player with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their family situation, personal struggles, or marital problems.

An ex- professional player, the defender, recently spoke on a broadcast about how his mother's death halfway through his career impacted his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he stated. "Some of the highs and the lows that come with it no longer felt the same after that." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been only three months.

The Final Point

So, regardless of what Liverpool achieve this season—if it's something or failure—even if we don't mention it every time we discuss their matches, and even if it isn't the cause for their final outcome, we must remember that a short time ago they suffered the loss of not merely a exceptional footballer, but, more importantly, they lost a friend.