What is at a peak is certain to decline because you can't go any further, while others can always catch up. This is most applicable to teams that become champions, because other champions are bound to emerge later. However, the nature of the fall of a champion goes a long way when referring to their conquest.

English champions, Liverpool fell to a fourth consecutive league defeat following their loss at Brentford on Saturday evening, joining the list of defending champions to lose four consecutive games in the competition.

Arne Slot's charge started the season with a run of seven consecutive wins across all competitions, although not convincing, they were able to sustain the results over time, even though it looked unrealistic.

Expectations were that the Reds, who never walk alone, were yet to get into their stride, and if they can be so determined to keep the positive results consistent, imagine what they'll do when they finally hit their stride.

After spending a fortune on top players in the summer, with Hugo Ekitike the only one delivering at the time and not much pressure on the others, Liverpool were tipped to replicate their title-winning season.

They were quickly off the blocks, too, in comparison to their rivals. They've beaten Arsenal in Anfield and after five games, the champions find themselves five points ahead at the top of the table, the best gap-lead that early into the season in Premier League history.

In the two previous occasions this has happened, Manchester City in 2015-16 and Liverpool in 2019-20, the former finished fourth while the latter was crowned champions at the end of the season, winning their first title in the new era.

The expectation was set very high, but after failing to beat Crystal Palace in their sixth game, things have not been getting any easier. In fact, they've gone from bad to worse.

They trailed for the majority of the game in Selhurst Park before scoring a late equalizer, hoping to go on and grab a late, late winner as they've done all season, but instead, it was their host that got the last laugh.

Liverpool would go on to lose to late goals at Chelsea, Brentford, and at home to Manchester United, who had not won in Anfield since January 2016, ending almost a decade of home invincibility against their historic rival.

The latest loss at Brentford is their fifth consecutive defeat in London, the first-ever time they've had such a prolonged drought in that part of the United Kingdom.

The season, in its premature stage, is slipping away from Liverpool, as now they fall seven points behind first-place Arsenal, and with the tough nature of their upcoming fixtures, things would get more complicated if Arne Slot doesn't find a solution in time.

Top players are struggling for form and new signings, bar Hugo Ekitike, have been very underwhelming. The defence is shambolic with just two clean sheets in their last 14 games across all competitions.

Mohamed Salah, their Messiah from last season, endured a massive dip in form, so much so that Manchester United legend Paul Scholes called him the 'worst best player' in a recent interview.

Nevertheless, Arne Slot's Liverpool are not the first defending champions to have such an uncharacteristic start to their title defence. In fact, among those who have fallen into this pit in the past are, Liverpool themselves.

Leicester City in 2016-17 and Manchester City in 2024-25 are the other two clubs that joined Jurgen Klopp's Reds of 2020-21 in the list of three, one recently made by four, as Premier League defending champions to lose four consecutive games.

Ranking the worst defending champions in Premier League history 

Leicester City in 2016-17

It isn't much of a surprise that Leicester City found themselves in this list, because it was meant to happen after they went all the way to claiming the league title in the previous season in 2015-16.

After Claudio Ranieri led them to the league title, N'Golo Kante, who was voted the club's player of the year, was sold to Chelsea, where he went on to win the league title in his first year, and also won the Premier League Player of the Year.

In his absence, they struggled, and by February, Claudio Ranieri departed his role as the team could no longer meet the expectations of the club due to an unusual standard achieved, when they just managed to escape relegation the season before their title success.

Leicester City lost five consecutive games between January and February, leading to the dismissal of Ranieri, and eventually finished the season in 12th place.

Liverpool in 2019-20

After years of coming close, Jurgen Klopp finally led Liverpool to their first-ever league title in the Premier League era in a very unusual COVID-19-impacted season, when they finished the campaign with 18 points ahead of second-place Man City.

What followed was far from expected, especially given how they dominated in their title-winning season, when they won 99 points, losing only three games and drawing as many.

They didn't have a great start to their title defence, and in one of their early-season results, they lost 7-2 at Aston Villa, conceding seven goals for the first time since 1963.

In February 2021, they lost four consecutive games with Brighton, Manchester City, Leicester City, and Everton all picking up maximum points against them in the league, winning once before suffering two more losses.

They finished the season in third, behind the two Manchester clubs, trailing champions City by 17 points.

Manchester City in 2024-25

The worst season in the coaching career of Pep Guardiola. Having dominated the Premier League for years, the Spaniard had all his good records shattered in a shambolic season, which saw his team lose out on the league title very early into the campaign.

Champions in six of the previous seven seasons, Manchester City went into the season having won all of the previous four league titles. They began with a statement, going unbeaten in their first 14 games in all competitions, winning 11.

Guardiola then decided to name a heavily altered XI for their EFL Round 4 meeting with Spurs at the end of October, which ended in a 2-1 defeat at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Their momentum was lost on that night, and even though Pep Guardiola named a strong starting XI for the trip to Bournemouth the following weekend, they suffered their first league loss of the season as the host won 2-1.

The result was followed with league losses against Brighton, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool — the 4-0 home loss to Tottenham Hotspur in this run remains their biggest league defeat in the Etihad under Guardiola.

City ended up getting their season back on track, but they could only manage a third-place finish, behind Champions Liverpool, who toppled them by 13 points, and Arsenal.

Manchester United in 2013-14

Although Manchester United never suffered four consecutive Premier League defeats in their title defense attempt in 2013-14, they had their worst season in the new era at the time.

Sir Alex Ferguson just retired after leading them to the league title in 2012 and a new chapter commenced under the watch of David Moyes, who also had a wealth of Premier League experience and had been selected by Fergie himself.

Unfortunately, things did not go well for the Scottish manager, and he was shown the exit door before the end of the season, with Ryan Giggs taking over as player-manager for the final weeks, leading them to a seventh-place finish, 22 points off the top.

Chelsea in 2015-16

Jose Mourinho returned for his second stint and led Chelsea to the Premier League title in his second season in 2014-15, but the quest to defend the trophy ended on a shambolic note.

The Portuguese was shown the exit door in December, and Chelsea ultimately ended the season in 10th position, the lowest of any defending champions in the Premier League era at the time.

They finished the season with 50 points, 31 behind Champions Leicester City and 13 more than Newcastle United, who occupied the final relegation position.

Blackburn Rovers in 1995-96

Blackburn Rovers’ title defence in the 1995/96 season was disastrous. After their fairy-tale Premier League triumph, Kenny Dalglish, who led them to the title as manager, moved upstairs to a director role, handing the managerial job to Ray Harford.

Unfortunately, the new man struggled to command the same authority, and a squad remained largely unchanged, started feeling too much comfort rather than hunger.

Star striker Alan Shearer continued scoring freely, but defensively, the team regressed. The club also failed to strengthen key areas, while the pressure of Champions League football exposed their lack of depth, and an early exit from Europe only deepened the frustration.

By mid-season, confidence had drained, and they hovered around mid-table, far from the champions they once were. They finished the season in seventh place, 21 points behind winners Manchester United, and have never again looked like a title contender.

What now for Liverpool 2025-26

Arne Slot has the wealth of talent and experience to turn Liverpool's season around, and winning their next fixtures before the international break will be decisive in achieving that.

Unfortunately, it will not be easy as some of their toughest opponents are lined up in the said period. Crystal Palace, Manchester City, Real Madrid, and Aston Villa are to play before the November international break.

Unlike the past teams that rank among the worst defending champions in Premier League history, this Liverpool team has its future in its own hands and will decide what to make of it.

It remains to be seen whether Arne Slot's team goes down as one of the worst defending champions in Premier League history or turns around their fortune, which will not be too surprising given the season is still immature.