🔗 Share this article

Just a couple of weeks back, Liverpool appeared set to secure back-to-back Premier League championships and possibly another Champions League trophy. The team's ability to win without optimal performances felt like the mark of genuine champions.

But, then the momentum turned. The Anfield side persisted with average performances and started losing matches. Meanwhile, the North London club, renowned for their resolute defense and squad depth, started narrowing the gap at the top.

Understanding a Crisis in Modern Football

Does three straight defeats represent a collapse? As with many sporting discussions, it depends completely on your interpretation of the key word. Was the United midfielder world class? How do you define "world class" even mean? Is the Birmingham club a big club? What constitutes "big"? Are Manchester United returned to prominence? Alright, maybe that's a question we can answer.

At a team of this club's stature and previous campaign's excellence, a minor setback appears a fair assessment. During a radio show, former striker Neil Mellor was asked how many defeats in a row would cause alarm. His answer was six. Currently, they are halfway to that particular point.

Identifying the On-Pitch Problems

One can observe obvious tactical problems. Integrating recent additions like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a different skill set to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Similarly, incorporating a gifted playmaker like Florian Wirtz has reportedly disrupted the midfield. Experts of the Bundesliga point out that Wirtz is a technical player who improves those beside him, linking play seamlessly rather than forcing himself upon the game.

Additionally, a host of individuals who shone last campaign—such as Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now below their best. In fact, most of the team are. Yet they all have one profound, recent event: the tragic death of their teammate and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Unseen Effect: Grief on the Field

We are now just more than three short months since the tragic passing of their teammate. While the outside world moves on rapidly, diverting focus to other events, Liverpool's players continue going to work day after day in the absence of their mate.

It is not possible to gauge how each individual and staff member is dealing from one day to the next. There is a significant amount of projection. Maybe Salah didn't track back in a recent match simply he was tired. But perhaps his performance level is down a few per cent because he is grieving for his pal.

Chelsea's head coach, Enzo Maresca, commented eloquently before a fixture, drawing a comparison to his own experience of the loss of a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, while at Sevilla. "The way they are performing this season is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after the loss. I lived exactly the same experience when I was a player 20 years ago."

"It is difficult for the players, it's not easy for the organization, it's not easy for the manager when you arrive at the training ground and you find daily that spot empty. So you must be very strong. And this is the reason why for me they are performing not well, but exceptionally well. Because they are attempting to deal with a situation that is not easy."

Just as explained succinctly on a well-known fan podcast, the memory triggers are ongoing. They are reminded by his song in the 20th minute, they see his empty peg in the changing room. In the middle of games, a through ball might be made and the thought arises: 'Oh, Jota would have reached that.' When the Egyptian was seen crying in front of the Kop a few games ago, it signals that everything is not normal.

The Boundaries of Punditry and Personal Grief

After reporting on football for twenty years, one comes to believe there is a inherent lack of depth in the majority of punditry. We simply cannot know how an player is feeling at any given moment and how that impacts their performance. Jota's passing is one of the clearest illustrations. We know a terrible event occurred, and we comprehend the concept of sorrow. Beyond that lies an immeasurable layer of impact on different people at the organization. It is very possible that some of the players personally don't fully understand its effect from one day to the next.

How the press covers this and how supporters dissect displays is obviously not the most important thing. On a functional basis, mentioning Jota's passing is challenging to accomplish in a brief segment before transitioning to tactical issues. Outside of this specific event and outside Liverpool, it would seem strange to qualify each criticism of a player with an admission that we are largely ignorant about their private circumstances—be it their family situation, personal struggles, or marital difficulties.

A former pro footballer, the defender, recently spoke on radio about how his mother's death halfway through his playing days impacted his passion for the game. "I lost some joy in football as much," he stated. "The high points and the lows 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 just three months.

The Concluding Point

Therefore, whatever Liverpool achieve in the coming months—be it success or failure—even if we omit reference to it every time we discuss their fixtures, even if it is not the sole reason for their final outcome, we must remember that a few weeks ago they lost not merely a exceptional player, but, more importantly, they said goodbye to a dear friend.