Theo Walcott says critics of Mo Salah and Liverpool are ‘forgetting’ one significant factor

Theo Walcott has said that critics of Mo Salah’s form are ‘forgetting’ the impact that the tragic loss of Diogo Jota must be having on the Egyptian and his Liverpool teammates.

Just over five weeks after the Reds players joyously paraded the Premier League trophy around a jubilant Anfield in May, they were grieving the death of their friend and teammate in a car crash, with an outpouring of sorrow throughout the world of football.

Arne Slot’s squad had to try and channel their devastation into performing on the pitch when the new season began little more than a month later, and after a promising sequence of seven straight victories, their momentum has been checked by three defeats.

Many Liverpool players have come in for criticism over their performances, including Mo Salah, whose work ethic was called out by Wayne Rooney. However, Walcott is insistent that the tragedy in July is having a profound effect on the LFC squad, in particular the Egyptian.

Walcott on the impact of Jota’s death on Salah and Liverpool

Speaking on It’s Called Soccer!, the former Arsenal winger said: “I think we’re all forgetting how big of a hit in everything that’s happened for Liverpool with Diogo Jota.

“When you have someone who’s very close to you every day and you never see this person who could influence in a positive way – his character, the way he is around the training ground, the way he brings people together – it could well be affecting the team massively. It could be affecting Mo particularly.

“I think we’re forgetting that these guys, yes they need to go and do a job. However, they’ve had something horrific happen to a big part of their Liverpool careers. Yes, we all want these players to perform, but we forget that they’re people.

“He [Salah] is trying his best, of course, but it’s just not quite clicking for him and that could be a factor. No doubt it’s a factor; of course it is.”

Liverpool players have had to cope with an extreme tragedy

In recent days, Nedum Onuoha spoke about how Liverpool players will be continuing to grieve for Diogo, and how certain triggers will constantly remind them of the heartbreaking fact that he’s no longer there with them in person.

The impact on of Salah losing a close friend was evident after the win over Bournemouth in August in our first Premier League game after the tragedy, when the Egyptian was moved to tears by fans at Anfield chanting the name of the Reds’ now permanent number 20.

The nature of football – and indeed life as a whole – is that the world keeps turning and people are expected to continue working even after experiencing such a heartbreaking loss, and there’d always come a time where the Reds would simply have to get back into their everyday routine.

The Liverpool squad won’t cite the horrific events of 3 July as an excuse to explain away bad results and below-par performances this season, and it’s understandable that the players at an elite level will be subjected to constructive criticism over mistakes made on the pitch.

However, from outside the dressing room, it’s impossible to comprehend the full scale of how much Diogo’s death has affected the teammates he’s left behind.

Even if we call out on-field errors, it doesn’t diminish our admiration for that group of players to pick themselves up and strive to perform at the highest level after such an extreme tragedy, and nobody should lose sight of that.