
'We will all miss you': Cristiano Ronaldo on Diogo Jota's death
03 Jul 2025 07:02pm
Slovenia's defender #21 Vanja Drkusic (right) heads the ball against Portugal's forward #21 Diogo Jota (centre) and Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo during the UEFA Euro 2024 round of 16 football match between Portugal and Slovenia at the Frankfurt Arena in Frankfurt am Main on July 1, 2024. Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP FILE PIX
LISBON - Portuguese football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo paid tribute to his international team-mate Diogo Jota, who was killed in a car crash on Thursday, saying "we will all miss you."
The Liverpool and Portugal star, 28, died along with his younger brother Andre when their vehicle veered off a motorway and burst into flames shortly after midnight in the municipality of Cernadilla in Zamora province, Spain. Slovenia's goalkeeper #01 Jan Oblak jumps to punch the ball clear next to Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal's forward #21 Diogo Jota during the UEFA Euro 2024. Photo by Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP FILE PIX
"It makes no sense. We were just together with the national team (they won the Nations League title last month), you had just gotten married," he posted on X.
"To your family, your wife, and your children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world. I know you will always be with them. Rest in Peace, Diogo and Andre. We will all miss you."
Jota's death comes only a month after he and Ronaldo were celebrating on the pitch after Portugal won the Nations League title beating Spain on penalties. - AFP
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The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Ruben Neves serves as pallbearer at Diogo Jota's funeral after emotional match
AL-HILAL'S Ruben Neves and Joao Cancelo flew to Portugal for the funeral for their former teammate Diogo Jota after an emotional Club World Cup quarter-final against Fluminense on Friday that saw them break down in tears during the minute's silence. Neves, one of Jota's closest friends, served as a pallbearer for the Liverpool forward who died alongside his younger brother Andre Silva following a car accident in northwestern Spain on Thursday morning when their Lamborghini veered off the road and caught fire. Tributes have continued to pour in for the brothers with footballing greats including Cristiano Ronaldo and Steven Gerrard, joining the Prime Ministers of Portugal and Britain in mourning the loss. Friday's match between Al-Hilal and Fluminense in Orlando began with players and fans observing a minute's silence in memory of the two brothers. Neves, who played with the 28-year-old Jota during their days at Wolverhampton Wanderers, issued a touching tribute on Instagram about an hour before kick-off. 'Wherever you are, I know you're going to read this, we've never been one for this sort of thing and maybe now I'll regret it a little, but you know what you mean to me just as much as I know what I am to you,' Neves said. 'More than a friendship, we're family, and we're not going to stop being family just because you've decided to sign a contract a little further away from us! 'When I go to the national team, you'll still be by my side at the dinner table, on the bus, on the plane... you'll always be there with me, as usual. We'll keep laughing, making plans, sharing our lives with each other. 'I'll make sure you're always there and I'll make sure your family never lacks anything while you're there, far away but thinking of us, waiting for us ... 'As of today, you'll be on the pitch with me, and we'll follow our path together, on the stage where we met.' Chelsea's Portuguese forward Pedro Neto also paid a heartfelt tribute to his friends when he walked out on the field with a shirt bearing their names before their quarter-final against Palmeiras in Philadelphia. 'We spoke with Pedro yesterday and this morning and this afternoon and it was completely Pedro's decision to play or not to play,' Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said after his team's 2-1 win. 'He did, he made a fantastic effort to play this game, to play with his teammates, and we really appreciate what he has done. 'I just said to the players that this win is especially for him because we know how close he was, and the effort that he has made. So no doubt that we really appreciate what he decided in the end.'


New Straits Times
6 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Carrying red wreath, Liverpool players join family for Diego Jota's funeral
GONDOMAR (Portugal): Carrying a red floral wreath bearing his shirt number, Diogo Jota's Liverpool teammates joined relatives and residents in a small Portuguese town today for the funeral of the soccer star, who died with his brother in a car crash on Thursday. Club captain Virgil Van Dijk, goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher and manager Arne Slot were among Liverpool teammates past and present who attended the service in Gondomar for the striker and his brother, Andre Silva. The English Premier League stars carried two floral tributes in the club's red colour into the chapel, each in the shape of a shirt. The one carried by Van Dijk had the number 20 written in white flowers, which Jota wore on his Liverpool shirt. The other bore the number 30, which was worn by Jota's brother, who played for FC Peñafiel in Portugal's second division. Dressed in black and with their heads bowed, the teammates entered the church in silence. The only sound was the applause from the crowd outside. Rute Cardoso, who married her childhood sweetheart Jota only weeks before the fatal crash, arrived with relatives. Hundreds of residents of Gondomar, a small town in northern Portugal where Jota grew up, gathered outside. The private service for family and close friends was presided over by the Bishop of Porto, Manuel Linda. In an emotional homily addressed to Jota's parents, his wife and their three young children, Linda said "solidarity in love is always stronger than death." Teammates from the Portugal national squad including Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes, who both play in the English Premier League, also attended the service. Jota's death at the age of 28 sent shock waves through the world of soccer and beyond, with messages of condolences pouring in from national leaders as well as across the sport. The brothers were believed to have been driving to a ferry in Spain to travel to Britain when their Lamborghini veered off the road and burst into flames after midnight on Thursday. Police said they suspected a tyre had burst. - REUTERS


Malay Mail
8 hours ago
- Malay Mail
‘Gone too soon': Liverpool pays final tribute to Diogo Jota in emotional farewell
GONDOMAR, July 5 — Liverpool players were gathering in the small Portuguese town of Gondomar today for the funeral of their English Premier League soccer teammate Diogo Jota, who died with his younger brother in a car crash in Spain on Thursday. Club captain Virgil Van Dijk, goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher and manager Arne Slot were among teammates past and present who arrived in Portugal late on Friday to pay their respects to the striker and his brother, Andre Silva. They are expected to join the grieving family and hundreds of residents of Gondomar, a small town in northern Portugal where Jota grew up, for the funeral at the Igreja Matriz church. Rute Cardoso, who married Jota just weeks ago, is expected to be accompanied by the couple's three young children. Jota's death at the age of 28 sent shock waves through the world of football and beyond, with messages of condolences pouring in from national leaders as well as across the sport. The brothers were believed to have been driving to a ferry in Spain to travel to Britain when their Lamborghini veered off the road and burst into flames after midnight on Thursday. Police said they suspected a tyre had burst. — Reuters