‘Everyone loved Diogo’ – Jota remembered one year on
World Cup 2026
A year ago today, the football world was stunned by the death of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva in a car crash.
Jota, 28, had won the Premier League title with the Reds just weeks before his tragic passing – and also married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children, 11 days earlier.
He scored 65 goals in 182 appearances for Liverpool, helping them win the FA Cup and League Cup in 2022, as well as the top flight in 2024-25.
Match Details
Jota began his career at Portuguese side Pacos de Ferreira before joining Atletico Madrid in 2016, although he never played a game for them as he was loaned to Porto for a season and then to Wolves, completing a permanent deal in 2018.
Across three seasons with the club, he scored 44 goals in 131 games.
Jota made his international debut for Portugal in 2019, replacing Cristiano Ronaldo in a 6-0 win against Lithuania, and won 49 caps, scoring 14 goals.
Tournament Impact
He played his last match for his country on 8 June 2025, as they beat Spain in the Nations League final on penalties.
But for all Jota achieved on the pitch, it is the character off it that is most fondly remembered by those who worked with him during his career.
Former Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, who played with Jota from 2020 to 2025, told BBC Sport:
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