Tributes Pour In After Death of Liverpool’s Diogo Jota

Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota has died in a car crash in Spain aged 28, along with his younger brother, Andre Silva.

Spanish authorities confirmed the fatal incident occurred in the province of Zamora at around 00:30 local time on Thursday. The pair were travelling in a Lamborghini when a tyre failure during an overtaking manoeuvre caused the vehicle to veer off the A-52 motorway near Cernadilla.

Jota was returning to Liverpool from Porto for pre-season training by road and ferry, having been advised against air travel following minor surgery. He had chosen to drive to Santander in northern Spain before boarding a ferry to England.

The journey came just 11 days after Jota’s wedding to long-time partner Rute Cardoso. The couple had three children.

Tributes quickly flowed on Thursday. Liverpool FC called it a “tragedy that transcends football”, with manager Arne Slot stating Jota embodied “what a Liverpool player should be”.

Slot last spoke to him after Portugal’s Nations League win, congratulating him on both that and his wedding. “In many ways, it was a dream summer for Diogo and his family, which makes it all the more heartbreaking that it should end like this,” he said.

The club’s owners and senior figures — Billy Hogan, John Henry, Tom Werner and Mike Gordon — released a joint statement, mourning “a wonderfully humble human being” and praising his “zest for life”.

Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes and FSG’s football CEO Michael Edwards echoed that sentiment, pledging the club would honour Jota “with the affection and respect he deserves”.

Teammates expressed their pain. Captain Virgil van Dijk called it a “privilege” to share the field with him, while Andy Robertson remembered how joyful Jota had looked on his wedding day. “We’ll never forget you,” Van Dijk wrote. “Your legacy will live on, we will make sure of it.”

Cristiano Ronaldo said the loss “doesn’t make sense”, revealing he had only recently seen Jota in Portugal camp. “We will miss you,” he added in remembrance of both Diogo and Andre.

Former manager Jürgen Klopp, who signed Jota in 2020, was among those grieving. “He was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving husband and father. We will miss you so much.”

Jota scored 65 goals in 182 matches for Liverpool and was part of the squads that won the FA Cup, League Cup and last season’s Premier League. Before that, he played for Pacos de Ferreira, Atlético Madrid, Porto, and Wolves — where he netted 44 times across 131 matches. Internationally, he scored 14 goals in 49 appearances for Portugal.

Supporters gathered at Anfield throughout Thursday, laying shirts, scarves and flowers at the Hillsborough memorial. A book of condolence has been opened at the stadium and online.

The funeral is scheduled for Saturday in Porto, following a wake on Friday afternoon.