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Just a few weeks ago, the Merseyside club seemed destined to claim back-to-back Premier League titles and potentially another Champions League crown. The team's ability to win without peak displays seemed like the hallmark of true title-winners.

But, subsequently the tide shifted. Liverpool persisted with average showings and began dropping points. Meanwhile, the North London club, renowned for their stubborn backline and squad depth, started closing the gap at the top.

Defining a Crisis in Today's Game

Can three consecutive losses represent a crisis? Like many sporting discussions, it depends entirely on your definition of the central word. Was the United midfielder world class? How do you define "world class" even mean? Are Aston Villa a big club? What defines "major"? Is the Old Trafford outfit back? Well, perhaps that is a question we might answer.

For a club of this club's stature and previous campaign's brilliance, a minor setback seems a fair description. On a recent radio show, ex- forward Neil Mellor was questioned how many losses in a row would cause alarm. His reply was six. Currently, they are halfway to that particular point.

Identifying the Tactical Problems

One can observe clear tactical issues. Integrating recent signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a distinct style to departed key players Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a difficulty. Similarly, blending in a talented playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the engine room. Observers of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative player who improves those around him, linking play effortlessly rather than forcing himself on the game.

Additionally, a host of individuals who shone last season—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are currently below their best. Actually, most of the squad are. And they all have one profound, recent event: the passing of their colleague and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Effect: Loss on the Pitch

We are now just over three months since the devastating loss of their teammate. Although the wider world progresses quickly, diverting attention to global matters, Liverpool's squad carry on training and playing each day without their friend.

This is impossible to gauge how every player and staff member is coping on any given day. There is a significant amount of speculation. Perhaps Salah didn't track back in a particular match simply he lacked energy. But maybe his performance level is down a few per cent due to the fact he misses his friend.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke eloquently before a recent, making a comparison to his own situation of the loss of a teammate, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "How they are performing this campaign is remarkable," he said of Liverpool. "Particularly after Jota's loss. I went through a very similar experience when I was a player two decades past."

"It's not easy for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the coach when you arrive at the training ground 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 good, but exceptionally well. Because they are attempting to handle a problem that is not easy."

As explained succinctly on a popular supporter's show, the reminders are constant. The players hear his chant 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 thought arises: 'Oh, Jota would have been there.' If Salah showed emotion in front of the Kop a matches ago, it indicates that everything is not normal.

The Limits of Punditry and Human Emotion

After reporting on football for twenty years, one realizes there is a fundamental lack of depth in most analysis. We simply cannot know how an individual is feeling at any given moment and how that impacts their play. Jota's death is one of the clearest illustrations. We are aware a tragic thing occurred, and we understand the nature of grief. But further lies an intangible layer of impact on various individuals at the organization. It is very possible that some of the players personally do not fully grasp its influence from one day to the next.

The way the press covers this and how fans analyze displays is clearly not the primary thing. On a practical basis, mentioning Jota's death is challenging to accomplish in a short segment before transitioning to on-field concerns. Outside of this specific event and outside Liverpool, it would seem bizarre to preface every critique of a footballer with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their personal lives—be it their family relationships, personal struggles, or marital difficulties.

An ex- pro footballer, Nedum Onuoha, recently talked on a broadcast about how his mother's passing halfway through his career affected his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he said. "Some of the highs and the lows that accompany it didn't really feel the same after that." And that was half a career; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been just three short months.

The Concluding Thought

Therefore, regardless of what Liverpool achieve in the coming months—be it success or if it's nothing—whether or not we omit reference to it every time we analyze their matches, and even if it is not the sole reason for their eventual result, we must remember that a few weeks ago they suffered the loss of not merely a brilliant player, but, crucially, they lost a dear friend.