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The Guardian
16 minutes ago
- The Guardian
‘Truly awful': rival fans united in grief at Anfield after death of Diogo Jota
Outside Anfield, where Diogo Jota's name recently soared from the stands, fans stood in a sombre, stricken silence. Barely five weeks ago they had watched their Portuguese hero lift the Premier League trophy, singing and dancing with his soon-to-be wife, their two sons, four and two, and their six-month-old daughter. Now, in a tragedy that puts the fleeting glories of football into shocking perspective, fans were laying floral tributes. 'It's just devastating,' said Gary Mann, 48, a season ticket holder, as he struggled to contain his emotions. 'He's a 28-year-old kid. He just always came across as a really nice human being – and that's the worst part of it. It's tremendously sad for his family.' Men, women and children were in tears as they hung scarves from trees and laid football shirts alongside an ever-growing bank of flowers outside Liverpool's main stand in the hours after Jota's death was announced on Thursday morning. Balloons bearing the number 20 – Jota's shirt number – were among the tributes, with several fans asking for the club to retire the number in his memory. 'He was an honorary scouser,' said Elliot Francis, 19, wearing his Liverpool jersey with Jota's autograph on the back, signed by the Kop favourite after one of the many home games when he would stop and talk to supporters. Jota's death – in a car crash in Spain alongside his 26-year-old brother, André Silva – is one of those shocking events that cuts through club rivalry and transcends football. Everton shirts were among those laid alongside those of Liverpool, Leeds United, Glasgow Rangers, Crystal Palace and other clubs opposite Anfield's Hillsborough memorial, dedicated to the 97 killed in the 1989 stadium disaster. 'My stomach turned this morning when I heard the news,' said Liza, 47, who would be raising eyebrows by wearing her Everton shirt at Anfield on any other day. 'It's not about that today. It's horrible for Liverpool fans and for the city. It's just absolutely heartbreaking.' In just the past six weeks, Jota had lifted the Premier League title with Liverpool and the Uefa Nations League trophy with Portugal. Two months ago he scored the winner in a tense home derby against Everton – his final goal. But it was the personal tragedy, rather than the onfield heroics, that left fans dumbstruck on Thursday. Jota married his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso, only 11 days ago, posting a video of their wedding on social media on Wednesday, along with the caption: 'A day we will never forget.' 'He had only just got married and had kids. Now his wife's a widow. It's truly awful,' said Anthony Ferns, 43. 'I live 10 minutes away and rushed over when I heard the news. I still can't believe it. It's like something from a disaster movie.' After laying down a Leeds United shirt, Maz Ferguson said she last saw Jota scoring two goals at Anfield against her club. 'But he was a player that you liked,' she said. 'He's gone out at the height of his career but football's irrelevant. He's got a wife and three young children, a mum and a dad who've just lost two sons.' Ferguson, 34, a lifelong Leeds fan, added: 'If any club has been through everything it's this club but Liverpool fans will come together for Diogo's family. This club knows how to put its arms around people.' Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, said she was 'absolutely devastated' for Jota's family after she laid a large red-and-white bouquet alongside the tributes. 'It's absolutely heartbreaking. It just shows how life events can change really quickly. I'm absolutely devastated for his wife, his children and his family. I can't imagine what they're going through at the moment. My son is 28 and it's just really shocking.' Denise Cook, a season ticket holder for 41 years, had written a line from Jota's famous chant – 'And his name is Diogo' – on her floral tribute. 'It will go down as one of the tragic days like Hillsborough,' she said. 'He just gave everything. He never gave up, he was always chasing the ball. He was very integral. He was just always there and always trying. At the time I thought it was one of the best signings we'd made.' Amber McKendry, 30, and her partner, Roger McBurney, 34, both Liverpool fans, had flown from their home in Belfast with their three young children for a long-planned tour of the Anfield Museum when the news broke on Thursday morning. They had to break the news to Freddie, seven, Max, five, and Farrah, four, all wearing their Liverpool shirts at the stadium. 'They're still digesting it,' said McKendry. 'They haven't really dealt with much death in their life. They've all went a bit quiet. It's become a very different day for us all.'
Daily Mirror
38 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Lionesses left in shock by Diogo Jota death as Lucy Bronze leads tributes
Lionesses star Lucy Bronze has shed light on the camp's reaction to the tragic death of Liverpool striker Diogo Jota as they prepare for their Women's Euros opener England star Lucy Bronze says the Lionesses were left in shock when they learned about the death of Diogo Jota. The Liverpool star and his brother Andre Silva were tragically killed in a car accident in Spain, with the Portugal international passing away on Thursday morning. A moment's silence will be held before tonight's and tomorrow's Women's Euro 2025 matches, including Portugal's group stage opener against Spain. England will begin their own campaign on Saturday against France, and Bronze reflected on how she and her team-mates reacted to the news. 'Yeah it definitely shocked all the squad when we woke up this morning and the news started to spread,' Bronze said. 'Obviously we have a lot of Liverpool fans in our team and football fans, but for people in general, everyone is just thinking of them – him and his brother. 'They were so young as well. We have seen all the messages on social media and stuff so you can tell what a great guy he has been. It's just really sad and we were shocked by the news, really.' She added: 'We'll be watching the games tonight and Portugal play their first game against Spain and I know there will be a minute's silence held before that game. I think everyone in an England shirt and everyone in the tournament will be supporting the Portuguese team because they will be a lot closer to this than we are. 'It is just a really sad moment for everyone involved in football, knowing what a great guy he is and what an amazing year he's had – not just in football, but he got married a few weeks ago and he's got some little kids. It's just so sad.' Jota, who was 28, was part of Liverpool's Premier League title winning squad under Arne Slot. He also won the 2024-25 UEFA Nations League with Portugal, playing 15 minutes of the final victory over Spain. "Just three weeks ago, I had the honour of presenting Diogo Jota with a medal after the UEFA Nations League final – a moment of joy, pride, and celebration that will now forever be burned in memory with sorrow,' UEFA president Aleksandar Ceferin said. "His passion, energy and spirit on the field inspired everyone around him. It is devastating to think that a life so full of joy and potential has been taken far too soon. Rest in peace, dear Diogo. You will not be forgotten." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The Guardian
39 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Diogo Jota obituary
The Portuguese footballer Diogo Jota, who has died aged 28 in a car accident in Spain, won the Premier League title, the FA Cup and the League Cup with Liverpool, with whom he played from 2020 until his death. A two-time winner of the Nations League with Portugal, he also claimed a Championship title with Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2018, having arrived in England the previous year. Playing up front and on the left wing, Jota was a versatile, exciting player whose pace, dribbling skills, intelligent movement and composure in front of goal allowed him to score more than 100 times in 300 appearances for his various teams, which also included Porto. A surprisingly good header of the ball, despite his 175cm (5ft 9in) stature, he never took his abilities for granted, and was respected throughout his career as a humble, hard-working individual who was more than willing to do the pressing work up front that is so much part of the modern game. His Premier League title with Liverpool came in April 2025, and he won the second of his Nations League winners' medals with Portugal in June. As popular on the terraces as he was in the dressing room, he might have expected to take part in many more successes at Liverpool and with his country over the coming years. Born in the Massarelos area of Porto, he was the son of Joaquim Silva, a crane operator, and Isabel, a car factory worker. 'Jota' is the letter J, for José. Diogo took it up to differentiate himself from similarly named players. He started at the age of nine with his local Gondomar sports club before signing for another, bigger, Porto-based team, Paços de Ferreira, in 2013 and making his senior debut as an 18-year-old the following year. He played more than 40 games for Paços de Ferreira in the Portuguese first division before being picked up by the Spanish La Liga team Atlético Madrid in 2016. Although he had two seasons on Atlético's books, Jota failed to make the first team there, and instead spent much of 2016-17 back in Portugal on loan with Porto, scoring eight times in the Primeira Liga and gaining Champions League experience there, including with a goal against Leicester City. Still not finding favour at Atlético, he spent the following 2017-18 season on another loan, this time in the English Championship with Wolves under the direction of their Portuguese manager Nuno Espírito Santo. His 17 goals proved instrumental in Wolves' title win ahead of Cardiff City and he was subsequently signed on a full-time basis for €14m (£12m), becoming a key element of the side's successful transition into the Premier League, where they finished seventh in their first two seasons back at the top level. Liverpool came along in September 2020, paying £41m to secure Jota from Wolves. The club had only recently won the Premier League and Champions League titles, but their manager, Jürgen Klopp, saw Jota as a player who could further strengthen an already impressive squad. He scored on his Premier League debut for Liverpool, against Arsenal, and shortly afterwards had the honour of bagging Liverpool's 10,000th goal, against the Danish team Midtjylland in the Champions League, one of seven he scored in his first 10 Liverpool appearances. A knee injury ruled him out for three months in the middle of that season, in which Liverpool finished third, but in 2021-22 he kicked on impressively, scoring 21 goals in all competitions. He slotted home one of Liverpool's successful spot-kicks as they beat Chelsea 11-10 on penalties in an extraordinary denouement to that season's League Cup final, and then came on as a 33rd minute substitute for Mohammed Salah in the FA Cup final, converting another from the spot as Liverpool again won on penalties against Chelsea after an extra-time 0-0 draw. In addition he appeared off the bench in the 65th minute of the Champions League final that season, which Liverpool lost 1-0 to Real Madrid. After signing a new contract at the beginning of the next season, Jota scored 15 times in the 2023-24 campaign despite being hampered by various injuries, before adding a Premier League medal to his other two Liverpool honours in Arne Slot's first season as head coach in 2024-25, with nine goals from 26 appearances. The first of his 49 international matches came in 2019 with a debut against Lithuania in a European Championship qualifier, and he was a member of the Portugal squad that won the Nations League that year. At the 2020 Euros he played in all of Portugal's matches until they exited after a round-of-16 loss to Belgium, but missed the 2022 World Cup due to injury. He was back in the Euros in 2024 with three appearances as Portugal progressed to the quarter-finals, in which they lost to France, and his medal as a winner in the 2025 Nations League came from another penalty shootout victory, this time against Spain in the final. In all he scored 14 goals for his country. Outside football Jota was a keen and accomplished gamer. He is survived by his wife, Rute Cardoso, whom he married two weeks ago, and their three children, Dinis, Duarte and Laura. His younger brother, André, also a professional footballer, died with him. Diogo Jota (Diogo José Teixeira da Silva), footballer, born 4 December 1996; died 3 July 2025
