Liverpool, Portugal Players Pay Respect to Diogo Jota and His Brother at Funeral
Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk arrived carrying a red floral arrangement in the shape of a soccer shirt with Jota's No. 20 in white. Liverpool teammate Andrew Robertson carried a similar arrangement with the No. 30, the number worn by Jota's brother, André Silva, who played for Portuguese club Penafiel. Coach Arne Slot was part of the Liverpool contingent.
Portugal international Rúben Neves served as a pallbearer for Jota a day after playing for at the Club World Cup in the United States. He and Jota were teammates at Wolverhampton earlier in their careers.
Neves and Joao Cancelo attended the funeral after playing in Orlando on Friday, when their Al Hilal was eliminated by Fluminense. Both players had wept when a minute of silence was held before the quarterfinal match.
The service was held at Igreja Matriz church in the Portuguese town of Gondomar, where Jota had a home.
Church bells pealed at 10:00 a.m. local time as the funeral started. Pallbearers carried the caskets of both brothers from a chapel next door and into the church. Relatives and hundreds of friends and acquaintances, including players of the local Gondomar FC where Jota started playing at age 9, then followed.
Portugal's national team coach Roberto Martinez and several other top Portuguese players also attended, including Manchester City duo Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias and Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes.
"These are really, really sad days, as you can imagine," Martínez said. "But today we showed we are a large, close family. ... Their spirit will be with us forever."
The bishop of Porto, Manuel Linda, led the funeral mass. The church was filled to capacity and a couple of dozen people followed the service via loudspeaker from outside. Afterwards, the coffins were carried to the cemetery next to the church.
Jota, 28, and the 25-year-old Silva were found dead near Zamora in northwestern Spain early Thursday after the Lamborghini they were driving crashed on an isolated stretch of highway just after midnight and burst into flames. Brothers killed in car crash
The brothers were reportedly heading to catch a boat from northern Spain to go to England where Jota was to rejoin with Liverpool after a summer break.
Spanish police are investigating the cause of the crash, which did not involve another vehicle, they said. They said they believe it could have been caused by a blown tire.
Their bodies were repatriated to Portugal after being identified by the family. A wake was held for them on Friday.
Jota's death occurred two weeks after he married long-time partner Rute Cardoso while on vacation from a long season where he helped Liverpool win the Premier League. The couple had three children, the youngest born last year.
Their loss led to an outpouring of condolences from the soccer world and Portuguese officials.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
recommended
Get more from Liverpool Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC Sports
17 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
How to watch PSG vs Real Madrid live: Stream link, TV channel, team news, prediction
PSG and Real Madrid meet in a FIFA Club World Cup semifinal swimming with narratives, as quite the spectacle will take place at MetLife Stadium on Wednesday. MORE — Prize money list for Club World Cup Luis Enrique's PSG have been sensational during this tournament, with the reigning European champions creating so many chances and dominating games. They did have a tough time against Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals, but they got the job done, as they always seem to. Still, they did have two players sent off late on and that could impact them for this semifinal. PSG are the red-hot favorites to win this competition and it feels like they are destined to dominate the club game for years to come. MORE — Club World Cup schedule, bracket Real Madrid have really settled in to their new 3-5-2 formation under new manager Xabi Alonso and were pretty comfortable in their quarterfinal win against Borussia Dortmund. Well, until the final few minutes when they almost imploded. Kylian Mbappe is pushing hard to start as he's recovered from his stomach issue and there will be so much focus on the former PSG striker before, during and after this massive semifinal. How to watch PSG vs Real Madrid live, stream link and start time Kick off time: 3pm ET Wednesday (July 9) Venue: MetLife Stadium — East Rutherford, New Jersey TV Channel/Streaming: Stream every game live on DAZN, for free PSG team news, focus Luis Enrique has lost both Willian Pacho and Lucas Hernandez to suspension after they were sent off in the quarterfinal against Bayern. Lucas Beraldo will likely come in to start for Pacho at center back and the only other selection dilemma Enrique has is whether to start Ousmane Dembele up top. Dembele came on and scored against Bayern and now he's back from injury it's likely he starts this game ahead of Bradley Barcola. Real Madrid team news, focus Xabi Alonso has a couple of big decisions to make in terms of his starting lineup. Dean Huijsen is suspended after picking up a red card late on against Borussia Dortmund. The young center back has been excellent in his first few games for Real Madrid but he will miss this huge match and Raul Asencio is likely to come in. Kylian Mbappe scored a beauty late on against Dortmund after coming off the bench and he will surely start against PSG. Young forward Gonzalo Garcia has been a revelation up top, scoring four goals in five games so far to lead the competition in scoring. But this is Mbappe. Against PSG. He has to start. David Alaba, Ferland Mendy, Eduardo Camavinga and Endrick remain out injured. PSG vs Real Madrid prediction This is going to be a classic. You can just feel it. PSG will press high and try to dictate the tempo and Real are just fine with making the most of space on the counter. Hold on to your hats. PSG 4-3 Real Madrid.
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Marc Cucurella relishing Thiago Silva reunion at Club World Cup
Chelsea's Marc Cucurella is looking forward to doing battle with former team-mate Thiago Silva for a place in the Club World Cup final. Evergreen defender Thiago, who left Chelsea last summer, is still producing impressive performances at the age of 40 for current club Fluminense. Advertisement The two clubs meet in the semi-finals of this summer's global tournament in New York on Tuesday. Thiago left Chelsea last summer after four years at Stamford Bridge (Bradley Collyer/PA) Fellow defender Cucurella said: 'We've watched some of their games. They have very good players, they are very determined and they have Thiago Silva. 'He's a legend of football, a top player. He's only played for big clubs and texted me before the (quarter-final) game saying, 'Let's go, hopefully we can see you in a couple of days'. I texted him saying, 'Let's go!' 'We have the opportunity to play against him again and hopefully we can do good things and win this game and play in the final which is what we want to do.' Advertisement Thiago is one of the great Brazilian defenders of his era and enjoyed an accomplished four-year spell with Chelsea in what was thought to be the twilight of his career after being released by Paris St Germain in 2020. Thiago, centre right, has played a key role in Fluminense's run to the last four (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP) His successes included Champions League glory in 2021 – a victory which earned Chelsea their place in the Club World Cup – and he remains a popular figure at Stamford Bridge. After returning to Brazil, he helped Fluminense avoid relegation last season and their unexpected run to the last four of this competition raised eyebrows. Thiago has started four of their five games and they have conceded just three times. Advertisement Cucurella said: 'They have a very high level. They have shown in this tournament why they are going right until the final (stages). 'We've played against two Brazilian teams so far and now we will face a third. They fight until the end. 'We're happy to be in the next round and to have this experience of playing against the South American teams, which isn't very common. Overall, we're enjoying this tournament.' Chelsea booked their trip to New York with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Palmeiras in Philadelphia on Friday. They previously faced Brazilian opposition in the group stage when they were beaten by Flamengo. Advertisement The Blues are reaching the end of a draining season which began last August and in which they won the Europa Conference League and qualified for the Champions League. Cucurella said: 'At this point, I think it is a good moment. We are in a good position. If we win one more game we can play a final. For all of us, it is very important. 'At this moment, we do not think about the fatigue. If we are tired, we want to enjoy this moment. It is a good opportunity to make something important, to be proud of our work and to play for Chelsea.' Meanwhile, English winger Jamie Gittens has described Chelsea as the 'perfect fit' after completing his reported £55million move from Borussia Dortmund on Saturday. Gittens' arrival comes after the headline captures of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro in what is proving a busy summer at the club. Advertisement The 20-year-old said in an interview with club media: 'The coach, Enzo Maresca, he was obviously showing me the way that Chelsea play and the way he likes to play with wingers. 'The system is built for wingers to attack their full-backs and create stuff and I thought doing it with Enzo in this system is a perfect fit for me.'
CNN
42 minutes ago
- CNN
Kylian Mbappé released from hospital after being treated for gastroenteritis
Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé has been released from hospital after being treated for gastroenteritis, the club announced on Thursday. Real Madrid had said earlier on Thursday that the 26-year-old had been admitted to hospital after suffering from 'an acute case of gastroenteritis.' The Spanish club said he would undergo tests and 'follow the appropriate course of treatment.' Later in the day, Los Blancos said that Mbappé had left hospital and returned to the team's training complex in Palm Beach where he would 'continue with specific medical treatment and will gradually return to team activity.' Gastroenteritis is an infection of the intestines that can cause diarrhea, pain or cramping in your abdomen, nausea or vomiting, and sometimes fever, as described by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Mbappé missed Real Madrid's opening game at the FIFA Club World Cup on Tuesday in Miami where it drew 1-1 with Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia. Real's next game at the tournament is against Mexican side, Pachuca, on Sunday in Charlotte, North Carolina. Its final group game is against Salzburg on June 26 in Philadelphia. The Club World Cup is Real's first competition under new head coach Xabi Alonso who replaced Carlo Ancelotti at the end of the season. In Mbappé's debut campaign with Real Madrid last season, the French captain scored 43 goals in 56 matches, winning the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup along the way – as well as the European Golden Boot as Europe's top scorer – but missed out on the La Liga title by four points and was knocked of the Champions League by Arsenal in the quarterfinals.
