Grieving Liverpool stars arrive to pay tribute to Diogo Jota: Arne Slot and Virgil Van Dijk join ex-skipper Jordan Henderson in Portugal as heartbroken teammates pay their respects
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Diogo Jota’s grieving Liverpool teammates will bid a final farewell to the Premier League winger at his funeral in Portugal later today.
Several members of the current Premier League side touched down in Jota’s hometown of Gondomar on Friday before visiting the Chapel of the Resurrection where the body of the 28-year-old and his brother Andre Silva, 25, lay at rest.
Players including Virgil Van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, Andy Robertson, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa, goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher and manager Arne Slot were given a round of applause by local mourners as they passed through the streets to visit the chapel last night.
A handful of former Liverpool stars also made the trip, among them Brighton’s James Milner and Ajax’s Jordan Henderson. The latter jetted to Portugal after paying a heartfelt tribute during a tearful return to Anfield earlier in the day.
Henderson was Jota’s captain when the Portuguese star arrived at the club in September 2020, the pair quickly developing a close friendship, and the England international was left in a state of disbelief by the news of his death.
Throughout the afternoon, hundreds of mourners lined the streets of Gondomar to pay tribute to the Liverpool striker and his brother, while Jota’s heartbroken wife Rute Cardoso, who only married him last month, also paid respects to her late husband.
A host of Premier League stars including Manchester City icon Bernardo Silva, Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot and Nottingham Forest’s Jota Silva have also made the trip to Portugal ahead of the funeral taking place at 10am today.
Father-of-three Jota died on Thursday morning when their green 200mph £180,000 Lamborghini Huracan burst into flames after a suspected tyre blowout along a highway near Zamora in north-west Spain.
Liverpool teammates past and present flew to Portugal to pay their respects, including Virgil Van Dijk (left), Alexis Mac Allister (centre, with hands in pocket), Caoimhin Kelleher (third from right) and Andy Robertson (second from right)
Curtis Jones (left), Andy Robertson (second from left) and Jordan Henderson (right) are given a round of applause by locals as they passed through the streets of Gondomar to Jota’s wake
Current and former Liverpool players including Alexis Macallister (second from left), Jordan Henderson (centre) and Federico Chiesa (third from right) were also present
Liverpool star Darwin Nunez, a teammate of Diogo Jota, attends the wake with partner Lorena Manas
Mourners sobbed and carried roses and national team scarves in homage to Jota, who won the UEFA Nations League with Portugal less than a month ago.
Aerial footage showed queues stretching from the small chapel, around the corner to the nearby church where his funeral will be held.
Jota’s heartbroken wife and parents gathered at a wake and held a vigil at the coffins of the former Wolves striker and his brother.
Jota’s wife Rute Cardoso, who married the 28-year-old footballer on June 22, walked into the chapel in Gondomar after returning with her husband’s body from Spain on Thursday.
The city overlooking Porto is where the couple, who share three children, met and started dating as teenagers.
Diogo and Andre’s mother Isabel, father Joaquim and their grandfather were also emotional on arriving at the chapel.
Joaquim hugged several people and was supported by his brother and later raised a hand to mourners as he left with his wife. They returned around an hour later.
Portugal’s Prime Minister Luis Montenegro also attended the wake along with Diogo’s agent Jorge Mendes. The President of Portugal, Marcelo de Sousa, came later.
Manchester United and Portugal star Bruno Fernandes prepares to head into the chapel
Manchester City star Bernardo Silva (c), a fellow member of the Portuguese national team, arrives for Jota’s wake with wife Inês Tomaz (r)
Bernardo Silva (pictured) had previously paid his respects to his fallen teammate on social media, posting ‘Forever with us’ in Portuguese, followed by a heart emoji
Manchester City star also posted a photograph of him and Jota with their arm around each other
Portuguese football player and friend Jota Silva (c) who plays for the Premier League club Nottingham Forest, arrives with flowers at the chapel
Manchester United player and Jota’s Portugal teammate Diogo Dalot arrives at the wake looking pensive
Liverpool’s Chief Executive of Football, Michael Edwards (left) and Sporting Director Richard Hughes (right) arrive into Portugal to attend the public wake
An aerial view shows the line of mourners snaking from the chapel to the church (top, middle of shot) where Jota’s funeral will be held tomorrow
Hundreds of mourners queue to pay their respects to Diogo Jota at the city centre chapel in the Portuguese city of Gondomar
A huge number of locals and travelling fans waited patiently to enter the chapel and say their farewells
Guests carry a wreath of flowers at a public wake held for Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva at the Capela da Ressurreicao on July 04, 2025 in Gondomar, Portugal
Mourners carried flags and football scarves bearing Diogo Jota’s face as they made the pilgrimage to the chapel
A fan wearing a Liverpool shirt holds up a a homemade message of condolence to the memory of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre
Mourners head out into the streets of Gondomar to pay their respects to the departed national team star
A mourner at the Chapel of Rest wearing a football scarf paying tribute to Diogo Jota
A Liverpool fan holds a floral tribute to Diogo Jota bearing the acronym YNWA – short for the club’s motto ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’
A devatstaed fan hides underneath a Portugal national flag as they deal with the shock of Jota’s sudden death
The grandfather of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva is comforted outside the funeral chapel
The father of Liverpool’s Portuguese forward Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva is conforted by a woman during the wake for his two sons in Gondomar
Isabel, the mother of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota and Andre Silva, accompanied by soccer agent Jorge Mendes
The President of Portugal, Marcelo de Sousa, centre right, visiting the Chapel of Rest next to the Sao Cosme Chapel today
Portugal’s Prime Minister Luis Montenegro arrives for the brothers’ wake at the Sao Cosme Chapel in the town of Gondomar near Porto
Luis Montenegro met relatives and laid flowers during his 30 minute visit
Diogo Jota’s agent Jorge Mendes was in all black
Back in the UK, outside Anfield today, former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson cried as he laid flowers
He was overwhelmed as he looked at the flowers and other tributes
Former captain of Liverpool Jordan Henderson hugging with Diogo Jota last year. Jordan wept for him today
The Sao Cosme Chapel in the town of Gondomar. Flowers gifted from Porto FC arrive
Father-of-three Jota was killed in the early hours of Thursday morning along with his footballer brother Andre Silva, 25.
Their acid green 200mph £180,000 Lamborghini Huracan burst into flames after a suspected tyre blowout on the A-52 highway near Zamora in north-west Spain. No other vehicles were involved, police have said.
The brothers were on a road trip to the northern Spanish port city of Santander to catch a ferry to the UK after the Liverpool player and Portuguese international was advised not to travel by plane following lung surgery.
Jota and Andre’s funeral mass will take place in the neighbouring church – the Igrega Matriz de Gondomar – at 10am today, with several current and former teammates of the two brothers set to attend.
It is not yet clear how public the wake will be. The chapel and neighbouring church are around a half-hour drive from the church in Porto where Diogo and his wife got married.
Local priest Jose Manuel Macedo initially revealed the funeral would take place at 4pm on Friday before later confirming it had been put back to this morning.
‘We’re available to celebrate [their life] with everyone and to share the pain and the Christian hope,’ Macedo told CNN.
The Chapel of the Resurrection, the location of the wake for Liverpool’s Portuguese soccer player Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva
People carry wreaths of flowers under police tape under the chapel
Investigators at the scene of the crash near Zamora, Spain today
Football fans leave tributes in memory of Liverpool player Diogo Jota at Anfield Stadium, home of Liverpool FC
Everton players Beto and Youssef Chermiti, and former player Ian Snodin lay tributes and pay their respects to Diogo Jota at Anfield
Jota and his wife after Liverpool won the title in May
It is understood the delay was linked to minor paperwork issues the men’s loved ones, who were still in Spain until late yesterday, were trying to resolve before being able to repatriate the bodies.
Gondomar Town Hall issued an emotional statement on Thursday as it confirmed it had decreed a day of official mourning.
It said: ‘Gondomar Town Hall expresses its deepest sympathy at the death of international footballer Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, illustrious Gondomar residents who left prematurely, leaving behind a remarkable sporting career and an example of dedication and professionalism.
‘Throughout his career, Diogo Jota stood out for his footballing talent and for the committed way in which he always represented the region and the country, winning national and international recognition.
‘At this time of sorrow and consternation, Gondomar Town Hall extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of these two Gondomar residents.
‘By way of tribute, the Mayor of Gondomar Luis Filipe Araujo, has decreed by official order a day of municipal mourning to be observed this Friday, 4 July.
‘During this period, the municipal flag will be flown at half-mast in all municipal buildings and facilities.’
The mayor described Diogo Jota as ‘an extraordinary talent and a true ambassador for Gondomar’ where he grew up and went to school.
Jota’s brother Andre, 26, was also a footballer and died in the crash
Local priest Jose Manuel Macedo said the wake will take place at Sao Cosme Chapel before the funeral Saturday at the Catholic church next door – the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar (pictured)
Jota is pictured (far right) with his wife Rute and younger brother Andre
Tyre marks can be seen on the road where Jota’s Lamborghini overtook a car and then collided straight into the crash barriers. Tragically the crash claimed the lives of the two brothers
The happy couple with their children Denis, Duarte, and a daughter born in 2024
They showed off their rings after exchanging vows in front of family and friends
Jota and Rute leave the church. They later said that they had both said: ‘Yes to forever.’
Jota described himself as the luckiest man in the world in an interview
Jota joined Liverpool from Wolves in 2020 and won three major trophies with the Merseyside club – including the Premier League title last season.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Jota’s friend and teammate, said on Thursday: ‘It doesn’t make any sense. Just now we were together for the national team, you were just married.
‘To your family, to your wife and children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world. I know you will always be with them.
‘RIP, Diogo and Andre. We will miss you.’
Liverpool boss Arne Slot penned a touching tribute to Jota, vowing he will ‘never be forgotten’. He began: ‘What to say? What can anyone say at a time like this when the shock and the pain is so incredibly raw? I wish I had the words but I know I do not.
‘All I have are feelings that I know so many people will share about a person and a player we loved dearly and a family we care so much about.’
There were also tributes from the likes of Jurgen Klopp, who described Jota as his ‘great friend’, as well as Liverpool team-mates Virgil van Dijk, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez.
