FAMILY, friends, and football stars gathered on Saturday, July 5, to pay their final respects to Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota and his brother, just two days after the tragic car crash that claimed their lives.
Saturday’s funeral service took place at 0900 GMT, and was held in his hometown of Gondomar, near Porto in Igreja Matriz Church.
Portugal national team coach Roberto Martinez attended the service, along with several top Portuguese players, including Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias, and Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes.
The ICIR reported that Jota, 28, and Andre Silva, 25, died on Thursday after their vehicle veered off a motorway in northwestern Spain and became engulfed in flames. This tragedy occured a week after the Portugal forward had got married.
The brothers were reportedly on their way to catch a ferry from northern Spain to England, where Jota was set to rejoin Liverpool following his summer break.
Their bodies were returned to Portugal after being identified by family members, with a wake held in their honor on Friday, July 4.
Jota’s death came just two weeks after he married his longtime partner, Rute Cardoso, following a grueling season in which he played a key role in Liverpool’s Premier League triumph. The couple had three children, with their youngest born last year.
Born in Porto, Jota began his football journey as a young boy in nearby Gondomar, while Silva played in Portugal’s lower leagues.
Their passing has sparked an outpouring of grief and condolences from the global football community and Portuguese officials alike.
Those who came to pay their respects included a childhood friend, Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Prime Minister Luis Montenegro, Jota’s agent Jorge Mendes, and FC Porto president André Villas-Boas.
At the Diogo Jota Football Academy, near Gondomar SC where the former Porto and Atletico Madrid star began his career, mourners set up a heartfelt memorial with flowers, scarves, candles, and football shirts.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues.