A Tribute to Diogo Jota and Andre Silva

    It’s tough to know where to start. A tragedy of this nature is something that I have not experienced in my lifetime. I have never seen a player of this stature pass away during his career so swiftly. He hasn’t transferred away, he hasn’t retired, he’s just gone. Immortalised forever as a Liverpool player.

    Whilst a majority of this piece will be about Diogo, it is crucial for me to also pay my respects to his brother, Andre. Whilst not such a famous figure as Diogo, Andre Silva was also living out his dream as a pro footballer for Penafiel in the second division of Portuguese football. He had dreams just like any other, to get his club to the top level, and by all accounts, was known as a dedicated and hard-working player. My heart goes out to his family, friends, and supporters who are going through as tough a time as anyone associated with Diogo.

    I also want to give my condolences to Diogo’s wife, Rute, their three children, his mother, his father, and everyone associated with him, as well as all his fans and anyone affected. Diogo was by no means a dirty player; he was a man who even rival fans never had a bad word to say about him, other than the fact that they may have hated him playing against them, a comment on his immense talent. 

    His journey in football is not a common one, unlike most. Diogo wasn't scouted by a big club by age 14; instead, he was still playing for his local side, Gondomar, until he was 17. He was finally accepted by Pacos de Ferrera after being rejected many times for his small frame. After a good spell for them, he got his first big move. Atletico Madrid signed him in 2016. He never played for them, but it was an essential point in his development, first being loaned out to Porto, then the following season to Wolves. He signed permanently for the Midlands club after his successful one-year loan spell. He helped bring the side up into the Premier League, and after Liverpool won the league in 2020, he was signed by then-manager Jurgen Klopp. 

    Jota won the FA Cup, two League Cups, and finally the Premier League in what turned out to be his final season. Jota was not only a critical club player but also made 49 caps for Portugal, scoring 14 times and helping them win 2 Nations Leagues. 

    Diogo Jota and his brother Andre passed away at around 00:40 CEST on the 3rd of July, after their Lamborghini tire blew up and put them into a barrier, before erupting into flames. Diogo was on his way back with his brother to Liverpool to report for preseason training, which was due to begin on Monday, July 7th. He was set to catch a ferry from northern Spain, as reports claim he wasn’t allowed to fly due to minor surgery.

    This was meant to be the best year of Jota’s life. He had won the Premier League with his club and won a trophy with his country, a dream of every child aspiring to be a footballer. He had married the love of his life just 11 days before his death, a woman he had been with for over a decade.

    The beautiful tributes I have seen from the football community show what our sport can do to bring us together. I am really struggling to understand how his teammates can get past this. It is never something that one should do, a player should never write a tribute to their teammate whilst the should still be playing. Players come and go, but with Diogo and with Andre, they are not on the end of a phone call; you can’t just call them to see how they are doing, such is the finality of death.

    This whole situation broke me, and I am not ashamed to admit I cried several times. Even today, I find it hard to express my feelings. I am fortunate to write my thoughts and share them with the wider world, rather than some social media creators who have to make a video, because I struggle to understand how they are keeping it together. In Konate’s video, Diogo was in an interview when he said he doesn’t have time to look back, so maybe he will get those moments when he retires, and now he has been robbed of that chance.

    A day later, I still struggle to believe it actually happened. I want to just wake up from what seems like a horrible nightmare, that someone will say “it’s okay, it’s all a hoax”, but unfortunately, I know that moment shall never come. The posts that Diogo made, saying he will never forget his wedding, that he and his wife are forever, I want to believe that nothing happened, that they are living happily ever after. It is hard to understand why this has happened. If you are a religious person, then you would say everything happens for a reason, but I fail to see a reason for why this man, so humble, talented and a man who loved his family above all else, has been ripped from this world in an instant.

    I want to take a moment to remind everyone how important family is and how fickle life his. No parent should ever have to bury their child, and Diogo and Andre’s parents must bury them both. His three children will now grow up not only without a father but also without an uncle, with a broken pair of grandparents who must grow old without their children. A wife who must take care of three children, left alone just 11 days after she said forever, after he said forever, after they said “til death do us part” in the belief that that moment will not be for a long time. 

    So go hug your family, go sit with them because as Ibrahima Konate said, yesterday it was someone else, today it was Diogo and Andre, and tomorrow it could be us. Cherish every moment because you never know when the last time you do something is; you can only hope that everything lasts for as long as possible. 

    If anyone is struggling with this news, as it is hard to swallow, feel free to write to me; you can send me an email from the homepage of this website. I am happy to talk to anyone about this because I have struggled a bit. If you need extra help, then I recommend you reach out to a therapist to chat or chat with your family.

Fly high, Diogo and Andre. You'll never walk alone.