Liverpool manager Arne Slot has insisted the club “will never” use the tragic death of Diogo Jota as an “excuse” for a poor start to the 2025–26 season.
Jota passed away in July in a moment that shook the football world. Many Liverpool players, including Mohamed Salah, lost more than just a teammate—they lost a close friend.
While performances were not overly convincing, the Reds started the campaign with seven consecutive wins across the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup. But then came a run of four straight defeats that turned into six losses in seven games.
Last time out, Liverpool were comprehensively beaten 3–0 by Manchester City, leaving the Reds already eight points off the pace at the top of the table and their title defence in tatters.
A number of factors are at play, including a lack of defensive depth and struggles of new signings to settle and adapt. But Andrew Robertson’s recent comments made clear just how much losing Jota continues to affect the Liverpool squad.
“We are always judged, sometimes fair, sometimes not fair. But I saw the interview live and I know that it is an issue for us, which is completely normal,” Slot said on Friday.
“At this moment in time, I always think how must it feel for his wife and his children? Because it is so, so, so much harder for them than it is for us. But that we will miss the player and the person is completely clear. Now, we play Nottingham Forest, last season there we were 1-0 down and it only took him [Jota] one minute to score the equaliser.”
Slot said it is “impossible to measure what it does to the players and to our results” to now be without Jota. “The last thing I would do is use it as an excuse,” he added. “What I do know is that we miss the player, that is 100% sure, and we miss the person, but I cannot measure the impact that has on our results. That is impossible for me to say, and we will never use it as an excuse.”
