06-07-2025
From the happiest day of their lives, to his farewell: How Ave Maria drifted from a church at Diogo Jota's funeral - just 13 days after same singer performed it at his wedding
At the end of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva's funeral service, Schubert's Ave Maria drifted from the small baroque church in Gondomar, near Porto, northern Portugal.
It is a song which had been performed by Alexandra Quinta e Costa as part of the Lapa Polyphonic Choir when Rute Cardoso, tied the knot with her teenage sweetheart, Jota, just 13 days prior.
But as Costa sang it again on Saturday, this time as the coffins were carried away to the Sao Cosme cemetery nearby, the meaning of that song changed forever for Rute, whose gaze did not once leave her husband's casket.
Amid the sound of a deep bell slowly tolling, her fingers clutched to the underside of his coffin as it was carried across the courtyard.
And when it seemed she might falter, she closed her eyes and rested her forehead fleetingly on the casket lid, wet from her tears.
In an Instagram post on Saturday, Costa shared the heartbreak of having to perform the song again in an emotional tribute alongside the couple's wedding photo and a black and white picture of Jota and Silva.
She wrote: 'I sang on one of the happiest days of your lives. Today I sang at your farewell. What a world we live in. Sincere condolences to the whole family at this time of such a painful loss.'
Only two weeks prior, the singer had watched Jota and Rute, both 28, exchange wedding vows before family and friends. No more perfect celebration of their happiness, they said, could be devised. Diogo declared himself supremely lucky.
Now Rute, dressed in white, was carrying the man with the magical feet and joyful heart to his grave.
The grieving wife of Liverpool footballer Jota arrived in his Portuguese hometown ahead of his funeral later today
Some among the crowd lowered their heads as the procession passed. Mostly out of respect. But also because it felt somehow indecent to bear close witness to this woman's torturous suffering.
Jota was killed along with his brother Andre, 25, after the Lamborghini they were travelling in crashed on a Spanish highway in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Family and friends, including footballers who flew in from all corners of the globe, had gathered in the 17th-century Igreja Matriz church and heard the Bishop of Porto, D. Manuel Linda, send a message to the couple's three children – sons Dinis, four, Duarte, two, and eight-month-old baby daughter Mafalda.
The bishop said: 'At this moment you are suffering immensely or perhaps not because you do not realise it. The ones who suffer a lot are your mother and your grandparents.
'Seeing the mortal remains of a child must be a greater torment, but when there are two urns there are no words...
'If it is difficult to see an adult cry, it is even more difficult to see a child cry. I send you a special greeting for your mother and grandparents.'
Maria Rodrigues, wife of Silva, was in floods of tears as she walked behind her husband's coffin along with pall bearers and family and friends
Jota's wife Rute placed her hand on the coffin of her late husband as it was taken inside the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar
Liverpool's captain Virgil van Dijk and Liverpool's Andrew Robertson paid their respects, carrying bouquets of flowers on the day of the funeral ceremony
Jota's teammates attended the funeral of the football stare with many visibly emotional
Liverpool's captain Virgil van Dijk, defender Joe Gomez and defender Andy Robertson left the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar following Jota and Andre's funeral service
Liverpool FC head coach Arne Slot was one of the mourners at the packed funeral service which was so well attended, those grieving were forced to stand outside
Portugal midfielder Ruben Neves arriving at the funeral of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva in the town of Gondomar
Diogo Jota and Andre Silva's grandfather arriving for the funeral of late Portugal's players on Saturday
Liverpool's Virgil Van Dijk and Andy Robertson arriving at the funeral of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva
Like Rute, Jota's parents, Joaquim and Isabel Silva, were still basking in the wedding afterglow when they got the news that their two sons had died.
'That poor couple. Only because of the grandchildren will they find the strength to carry on,' said a family friend, expressing the sentiments of many.
Both coffins were carried through the front doors of the church to the sound of violins and applause in a procession led by two priests at 10am.
Jota's Liverpool team-mates flew in overnight. They included Virgil van Dijk, the club's captain, and Andrew Robertson, who carried red wreaths in the shape of football shirts emblazoned with Jota's number 20 and his brother's number 30.
Former Liverpool players, including Jordan Henderson and James Milner, were also present.
Jota and his brother were 190 miles into a trip from Porto to Santander, where he planned to take a ferry to England, when they crashed in the Spanish province of Zamora.
Many of Jota's Portugal team-mates also attended, including Ruben Neves, who flew in after playing for his club Al Hilal in their Club World Cup match against Fluminense in Orlando, US, to be a pallbearer.
Diogo Jota's agent Jorge Mendes arriving for the funeral of the Liverpool footballer at the Chapel of the Resurrection, in Gondomar
President of FC Porto Andre Villas Boas (second from the left) attending the funeral of late Portugal's player Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, in Gondomar
Relatives followed the coffin of Portuguese football player Diogo Jota carried out of the church after a joint funeral for him and his brother Andre
Mourners wore Diogo Jota shirts and paid tribute at Anfield Stadium following his tragic death
Tributes piled up outside Anfield Stadium as Liverpool fans paid an emotional farewell to Jota at the forward's funeral in Portugal
The mother-of-three was seen hugging well wishers as she exited her car near the Chapel of the Resurrection
Mourners left the funeral of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva held at Igreja Matriz de Gondomar in the town of Gondomar
Tributes included wreaths spelling out his name, Liverpool scarfs, flags and tops
Fans attended the funeral of late Portugal's player Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, in Gondomar
Mourners gathered outside the Chapel of the Resurrection, on the day of Jota and his brother Andre's funeral ceremony
People took part in a funeral procession of Portuguese footballers and brothers Diogo Jota and Andre Silva in Gondomar
Mourners at the funeral of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva make their way into the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar in the town of Gondoma to start the funeral service
Floral tributes bearing the shirt numbers of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva were placed on their graves in a cemetery in Gondomar
Mourners gather at the graves of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva in Gondomar
The church was so packed with mourners that about a hundred guests had to listen to the service while milling around outside. One couple clung to each other for its entire duration.
Thousands of the town's residents, many wearing Liverpool or Portugal colours, gathered on all sides of the church grounds to hear the eulogies before the brothers were laid to rest in the Sao Cosme cemetery a short walk away.
Their bodies were buried, not cremated, in a graveyard screened by olive trees. Jota's team-mates from his former club Wolves, including Joao Moutinho and Rui Patricio, joined club officials to pay their respects. Jota joined the West Midlands club in 2017 before leaving for Liverpool in 2020.
They were spotted escorting a Wolves-themed wreath which read: 'Diogo your desire to fight and win lit up Molineux.'
Speaking after the service, Roberto Martinez, the Portugal manager, was emotional as he told of his sadness over the tragedy. He said: 'I can only say that these are very, very sad days.
'Today was a demonstration for Diogo and Andre that we are all together and that we are Portugal.
