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Only a couple of weeks ago, the Merseyside club appeared destined to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and possibly a further Champions League crown. Their ability to secure victories without optimal displays felt like the hallmark of genuine title-winners.

But, subsequently the momentum turned. Liverpool persisted with mediocre performances and began losing points. At the same time, the North London club, known for their stubborn defense and squad depth, began narrowing the distance at the summit.

Understanding a Crisis in Today's Game

Can a trio of straight losses represent a collapse? As with many sporting discussions, it depends entirely on your interpretation of the key term. Is Paul Scholes world class? How do you define "elite" actually signify? Is the Birmingham club a major team? What constitutes "big"? Is the Old Trafford outfit returned to prominence? Alright, perhaps that is a question we might answer.

For a club of Liverpool's stature and previous campaign's excellence, a minor crisis appears a reasonable assessment. During a broadcast, ex- forward Neil Mellor was questioned how many losses in a row would trigger panic. His answer was six. Currently, they are midway to that point.

Pinpointing the On-Pitch Issues

There are obvious footballing problems. Integrating new additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who offer a distinct skill set to departed stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Likewise, blending in a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly unbalanced the midfield. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a creative talent who elevates those beside him, connecting play seamlessly rather than forcing himself on the game.

Additionally, a number of players who excelled last campaign—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently below their best. Actually, most of the team are. And every one of them have one profound, fresh event: the passing of their teammate and friend, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Impact: Loss on the Field

We are now just over three short months since the devastating passing of their teammate. Although the outside world moves on rapidly, diverting focus to other events, the club's squad continue training and playing day after day in the absence of their friend.

This is not possible to know how each player and staff member is dealing from one day to the next. It requires a great deal of speculation. Maybe Salah failed to defend in a recent match simply he lacked energy. Or maybe his performance level is down a small per cent due to the fact he misses his friend.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke insightfully before a fixture, drawing a comparison to his personal situation of losing a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "The way they are performing this campaign is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's tragedy. I went through exactly the same thing when I was a player two decades past."

"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 see daily that place vacant. So you must be incredibly resilient. And this is the reason why for me they are doing not good, even better than good. Because they are trying to deal with a problem that is not easy."

Just as explained well on a popular fan podcast, the memory triggers are ongoing. The players hear his song in the first half, they notice his unused peg in the changing room. In the middle of matches, a pass might be made and the realization arises: 'Ah, Diogo would have been there.' If Salah showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it signals that all is far from normal.

The Limits of Punditry and Human Emotion

Having covering football for twenty years, one realizes there is a fundamental lack of depth in most punditry. We genuinely do not know how an individual is feeling at any given time and how that impacts their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest examples. We are aware a tragic thing happened, and we understand the nature of grief. Beyond that lies an intangible level of impact on various people at the organization. It is very possible that a few of the players personally don't fully understand its influence from one moment to the next.

How the press covers this and how supporters analyze displays is obviously far from the primary factor. On a practical basis, mentioning Jota's death is challenging to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical concerns. Beyond this particular tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem strange to preface every criticism of a player with an acknowledgment that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their family relationships, health struggles, or marital difficulties.

A former professional player, Nedum Onuoha, lately spoke on a broadcast about how his mother's passing halfway through his playing days impacted his passion for the game. "I didn't enjoy football as much," he stated. "Some of the high points and the low points that come with 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 Final Thought

Therefore, whatever Liverpool achieve this season—be it success or if it's nothing—whether or not we don't mention it whenever we analyze their fixtures, even if it is not the sole reason for their final outcome, we must remember that a short time ago they suffered the loss of not just a exceptional footballer, but, crucially, they lost a friend.