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Only a couple of weeks ago, the Merseyside club appeared destined to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and potentially another Champions League crown. The team's capacity to secure victories despite not optimal performances seemed like the mark of true champions.

However, then the momentum shifted. The Anfield side persisted with mediocre performances and started dropping matches. Meanwhile, Arsenal, known for their resolute defense and squad depth, started closing the distance at the summit.

Understanding a Slump in Modern Football

Can three straight losses constitute a crisis? Like many football debates, it hinges completely on your interpretation of the key word. Was the United midfielder elite? What does "elite" even mean? Is the Birmingham club a big club? What constitutes "major"? Are Manchester United back? Alright, perhaps that is one we might settle.

For a club of this club's size and previous campaign's brilliance, a minor crisis appears a reasonable description. During a broadcast, ex- forward Neil Mellor was questioned how many defeats in a row would trigger alarm. His answer was six. At present, they are halfway to that threshold.

Pinpointing the Tactical Issues

One can observe clear tactical issues. Assimilating recent additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a distinct skill set to previous key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, presents a challenge. Likewise, blending in a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the engine room. Observers of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative talent who elevates those beside him, linking play effortlessly rather than imposing himself on the game.

Furthermore, a number of players 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 squad is. Yet every one of them have one significant, fresh experience: the passing of their colleague and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Impact: Loss on the Pitch

It has been just more than three months since the tragic passing of their teammate. Although the wider world progresses rapidly, shifting attention to other matters, Liverpool's squad continue training and playing each day without their mate.

This is impossible to know how each player and member of the backroom team is dealing on any given day. It requires a great deal of speculation. Maybe Salah didn't track back in a particular match because he was tired. But perhaps his performance level is down a small per cent because he is grieving for his friend.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented insightfully before a fixture, making a comparison to his personal experience of losing a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "The way they are doing this season is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's tragedy. I went through a very similar thing when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It is difficult for the players, it's not easy for the club, it's not easy for the coach 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 doing not well, but exceptionally well. Because they are attempting to handle a problem that is not easy."

As summarized well on a popular fan podcast, the reminders are ongoing. The players are reminded by his song in the first half, they notice his empty peg in the changing room. Even during games, a through ball might be made and the thought arises: 'Ah, Diogo would have been there.' When the Egyptian was seen crying in front of the Kop a few games ago, it indicates that all is not all right.

The Boundaries of Football Analysis and Human Emotion

Having covering football for twenty years, one realizes there is a fundamental lack of depth in most analysis. We simply do not know how an player is coping at any given moment and how that affects their performance. Jota's death is one of the most stark illustrations. We are aware a terrible thing happened, and we comprehend the concept of grief. Beyond that lies an intangible level of effect on different individuals at the club. It is very possible that a few of the squad themselves do not truly understand its effect from one moment to the next.

How the media reports on this and how supporters dissect displays is obviously not the primary factor. On a practical level, mentioning Jota's death is difficult to do in a brief segment before moving on to on-field issues. Outside of this particular event and beyond Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to qualify every criticism of a player with an acknowledgment that we know so little about their personal lives—be it their family situation, personal struggles, or marital difficulties.

An ex- professional footballer, the defender, lately spoke on radio about how his mother's death midway through his career affected his love for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he stated. "Some of the highs and the low points that accompany it didn't really feel the same any more." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been only three months.

The Concluding Point

So, whatever Liverpool accomplish in the coming months—be it success or if it's nothing—even if we don't mention it every time we analyze their fixtures, even if it isn't the cause for their eventual result, we should not forget that a short time ago they lost not merely a exceptional footballer, but, crucially, they lost a dear friend.