The Reds' Current Struggles: How Diogo Jota's Loss Continues to Affect the Team

Only a couple of weeks ago, Liverpool appeared destined to secure back-to-back Premier League titles and possibly another Champions League crown. Their capacity to secure victories without optimal performances felt like the mark of true title-winners.

But, subsequently the momentum turned. The Anfield side continued with average showings and began dropping points. At the same time, Arsenal, known for their resolute backline and squad depth, started closing the distance at the summit.

Understanding a Slump in Modern Football

Does three consecutive defeats represent a crisis? Like many sporting discussions, it depends entirely on your interpretation of the key term. Was the United midfielder elite? How do you define "elite" actually mean? Are Aston Villa a big team? What constitutes "major"? Is the Old Trafford outfit returned to prominence? Well, perhaps that is one we might settle.

For a club of this club's stature and previous campaign's brilliance, a mini crisis seems a reasonable description. During a radio show, former forward Neil Mellor was asked how many losses in a row would cause panic. His reply was six. Currently, they are midway to that particular point.

Pinpointing the On-Pitch Problems

One can observe obvious footballing problems. Integrating recent signings like Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, who provide a different skill set to previous stalwarts Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, creates a challenge. Likewise, blending in a gifted attacking midfielder like Florian Wirtz has reportedly unbalanced the engine room. Observers of the Bundesliga note that Wirtz is a creative talent who elevates those beside him, connecting play seamlessly rather than imposing himself on the game.

Furthermore, a host of individuals who excelled last season—including Mo Salah, Ibrahima Konaté, Alexis Mac Allister, and Conor Bradley—are now below their best. Actually, most of the squad are. Yet they all share one significant, fresh event: the passing of their colleague and companion, Diogo Jota.

The Invisible Impact: Grief on the Pitch

It has been just over three months since the tragic loss of their friend. Although the wider world moves on quickly, diverting focus to global matters, Liverpool's squad continue training and playing day after day in the absence of their mate.

This is impossible to gauge how every individual and staff member is coping on any given day. There is a great deal of projection. Perhaps Salah failed to defend in a recent match simply he lacked energy. Or maybe his form is down a few per cent because he is grieving for his pal.

The London club's head coach, Enzo Maresca, spoke eloquently before a fixture, making a parallel to his own experience of the loss of a fellow player, Antonio Puerta, when at Sevilla. "How they are doing this campaign is fantastic," he said of Liverpool. "Especially after the loss. I went through exactly the same thing 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 come to the training complex and you find every day that place vacant. So you have to be very strong. And this is the explanation why for me they are doing not well, even better than good. Because they are attempting to handle a problem that is not easy."

Just as summarized well on a well-known supporter's show, the reminders are constant. The players are reminded by his song in the first half, they see his unused locker in the changing room. In the middle of games, a through ball might be made and the thought arises: 'Oh, Jota would have been there.' When the Egyptian was seen crying in front of the Kop a few games ago, it indicates that everything is not all right.

The Boundaries of Football Analysis and Human Emotion

After covering football for twenty years, one realizes there is a inherent superficiality in the majority of analysis. We genuinely do not know how an individual is feeling at any given moment and how that affects their play. Jota's death is one of the most stark examples. We know a tragic thing occurred, and we understand the nature of grief. Beyond that lies an intangible level of impact on different individuals at the organization. It is very possible that a few of the players personally don't fully grasp its effect from one day to the next.

The way the media reports on this and how supporters dissect performances is clearly not the primary thing. On a functional level, bringing up Jota's death is challenging to do in a short segment before moving on to on-field concerns. Outside of this specific tragedy and beyond Liverpool, it would seem strange to qualify every criticism of a player with an acknowledgment that we are largely ignorant about their private circumstances—be it their family relationships, personal struggles, or relationship difficulties.

A former professional footballer, the defender, lately spoke on a broadcast about how his mother's passing halfway through his playing days impacted his love 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 any more." And that was many years into his profession; for Liverpool and Jota, it has been only three months.

The Final Thought

So, regardless of what Liverpool achieve this season—be it success or failure—even if we don't mention it whenever we analyze their fixtures, and even if it is not the sole reason for their final outcome, we should not forget that a few weeks ago they suffered the loss of not merely a brilliant footballer, but, more importantly, they lost a friend.