The public conversation surrounding ‘bad champions’, what makes a ‘bad champion’ has circled clubs like Liverpool this season, following them around and arguably adding external pressure. The label is pejoratively aimed to incite fans, diminish past achievements and enhance panic over current performance.

It is a term typically met with a roll of the eyes or an occasional tut as it does tend to ignore context. However, for last season's Turkish Süper Lig champions, Istanbul Basaksehir, the term has taken on a whole new meaning in this Covid campaign.  

What started as a four-game winless and goalless start to the season in which they lost to two newly promoted sides, Hatayspor and Fatih Karagümrük, quickly morphed into a profoundly abysmal season in which they are fighting to retain their place in the Süper Lig, let alone as champions or Turkish representatives in Europe.  

Why Are They Failing?