Liverpool’s Portuguese forward Diogo Jota, 28, died in a fiery car crash near Zamora in northwestern Spain with his brother, Spanish state-owned TV station said on Thursday, citing local firefighters.
The Spanish civil guard confirmed to The Associated Press that Jota and his brother Andre Silva, 25, were found dead after their car went off a road. Police were investigating the causes. They said there were no other vehicles involved.
“Everything points to the blowout of a tyre while it (the vehicle) was overtaking,” the civil guard said in a statement, adding that the corpses had been taken to a morgue.
The regional fire department of Castille-Leon, where Zamora is located, said on its website a car crashed shortly after midnight on Thursday and burst into flames, with two men found dead.
Jota helped Liverpool win the Premier League last season and also won the FA Cup and League Cup with the Merseyside outfit.
Portuguese football federation president Pedro Proenca wrote on social media that he was “devastated”, calling Jota “an extraordinary person, respected by all his colleagues and opponents, someone blessed with an infectious joy and a reference for his own community”.
“We have lost two champions. The death of Diogo and Andre Silva are irreparable losses for Portuguese football, and we will do everything possible to honour their legacy every day,” Proenca added.
He said they had asked UEFA for a minute’s silence before Portugal’s Women’s Euro 2025 match against Spain in Switzerland on Thursday.
Liverpool said it was “devastated” by the “unimaginable loss” and that it would make no further comment for the privacy of the brothers’ family, friends, teammates and club staff.
“We will continue to provide them with our full support,” Liverpool added in a statement.
Liverpool fans had already begun laying flowers, scarves and other tributes at the club’s Anfield stadium, British media reported.
‘Honoured Portugal’s name’
Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro described Jota as “an athlete who greatly honoured Portugal’s name”, expressing his condolences on “a sad day for football and for national and international sports”.
“FC Porto is in mourning. It is with shock and deep sorrow that we send our heartfelt condolences” to the family and friends of Jota and his brother, the Portuguese giants said in a statement.
Atletico Madrid also released a message expressing the La Liga club’s shock at the deaths and offered their condolences.
“They say we only lose people when we forget them. I will never forget you!”, Jota’s international teammate Ruben Neves posted in an Instagram story.
Jota had married his partner Rute Cardoso on June 22, posting a video of their wedding on Instagram just hours before the accident.
They had three children.
The former Atletico Madrid, Porto and Wolverhampton Wanderers star scored nine goals in all competitions last season as Liverpool cruised to their 20th Premier League title.
Capped 49 times by Portugal, Jota moved to England in 2017 joining Wolves.
His impressive form earned a £45 million ($62 million) move to Liverpool three years later where he quickly became a fans’ favourite thanks to his goalscoring prowess.
Jota scored 65 times for the Reds in his five seasons at the club and lifted the League Cup and FA Cup in the 2021/22 season.
His brother Andre played as a midfielder for FC Penafiel in Portugal’s second tier.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters and AP)
Leave a comment