Tributes were paid to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva at Liverpool’s opening match since their passing.
Both Jota, a forward for Portugal and Liverpool, and Silva, also a professional footballer, lost their lives in a car accident on July 3 in Zamora, Spain.
Before the Reds’ first pre-season friendly against Preston North End, there were heartfelt performances of Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” and Liverpool’s anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
During the latter, a visibly emotional Preston captain, Ben Whiteman, placed a wreath in front of the traveling Liverpool fans.
The away section, adorned with flags and scarves honoring the former Porto and Wolves player, passionately sang Jota’s song as the players took the field, followed by a respectful minute of silence.
In the 20th minute, the crowd erupted into another rendition of Jota’s song. When Conor Bradley scored the first goal for Liverpool, he looked up to the sky in a muted celebration.
Striker Darwin Nunez scored the second goal and paid tribute by performing two of Jota’s signature celebrations in front of the Liverpool supporters.
Cody Gakpo added the third goal in a 3-1 victory and held up his fingers to signify Jota’s squad number, 20.
The match program featured a black-and-white photo of Jota holding the Premier League trophy and included tributes to both him and his brother.
Liverpool has retired Jota’s number 20 shirt across the club, announcing it at 20:20 BST on Friday.
In his first interview since Jota’s death, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot told Liverpool TV: “If we want to laugh, we laugh; if we want to cry, we cry. If they want to train, they can train; if they don’t, they don’t have to.
Just be yourself and don’t feel pressured to act differently than your emotions dictate. We will always carry him in our hearts and thoughts, wherever we go.”
Read also:
- Liverpool retire jersey number 20 in honour of Diogo Jota
- Jota’s death ‘very hard to accept’, Mo Salah says
- Football community mourns loss of Diogo Jota, brother
Jota scored 65 goals in 182 appearances for Liverpool, contributing to their FA Cup and League Cup victories in 2022 and their Premier League title last season.
His last match for Portugal was a victory over Spain in the Nations League final on June 8, where he scored 14 goals in 49 international appearances.
According to the Guardia Civil, Jota and his brother died when their Lamborghini veered off the road due to a tire blowout while overtaking another vehicle. The brothers were en route to the Spanish port of Santander so that Jota could return to Liverpool for pre-season training.
Thousands of Liverpool fans made the journey to Deepdale, not just to see their team in action for the new season but to honor Jota and Silva and show support for the team and coaching staff.
The fans in the Bill Shankly Kop passionately sang Jota’s song.
