Web Desk
Diogo Jota, the Portuguese forward known for his intelligence, tremendous work rate, and clinical finishing, has died in a car crash at the age of 28. Jota and his younger brother, Andre Silva, were killed when the Lamborghini Aventador went off the road after a tyre blowout in Zamora, Spain. Jota had tied the knot with Rute Cardoso, his long-term partner and mother of his three children, just 10 days earlier.
Jota won the English Premier League (EPL) with Liverpool in 2024-25, and was also part of the Portugal squad that lifted the Nations League in June. In 182 games for Liverpool, he scored 65 goals. Though injuries frequently hampered his progress, he was considered the most natural finisher at the club after Mohamed Salah.
Born Diogo José Teixeira da Silva on December 4, 1996, in Massarelos, Porto, he began his professional football journey with Paços de Ferreira. A move to Atlético Madrid followed, though he was immediately loaned out to Porto in his homeland. After a decent 2016-17 season there, he arrived at Wolverhampton Wanderers, then a Championship side. His 17 goals were pivotal to their promotion, and he flourished in the top flight as Wolves established themselves as a team to be feared under Nuno Espírito Santo.
His displays in the Black Country prompted Liverpool to move for him after Jürgen Klopp had ended their 30-year title drought. Jota quickly made himself a big part of Liverpool’s strike force, with his ability to cut in from the wing or play through the middle. He enjoyed his best campaign in 2021-22 as Liverpool lifted both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, and reached the final of the UEFA Champions League.
For Portugal, he won 49 caps and scored 14 times, as part of a generation that grew up idolising Cristiano Ronaldo and then got to play with him. He was a hugely popular figure in the Liverpool squad, and the club statement referred to a “fierce competitor and a true Red, whose impact will be forever remembered”.