‘We Will All Miss You’—Cristiano Ronaldo's Emotional Reaction to Death of Diogo Jota | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo has posted a heartfelt tribute to Portugal international teammate Diogo Jota following his untimely death in a road traffic accident.

Jota, just 28, was killed alongside his brother André when the vehicle they were travelling in on the A-52 motorway in Zamora, Spain, came off the road. It's been reported by authorities that one of the car's tyres burst while overtaking another vehicle before catching fire.

Jota's club side, Liverpool, said their forward's death “was an unimaginable loss”, and tributes have poured in from around the football world for a player who was revered as one of the most clinical finishers in the Premier League.

Less than two months ago, Jota lifted the Premier League title for the first time in his career, and further success followed on the international stage when Portugal stunned Spain to win the Nations League for the second time.

Key to that success was the irrepressible Ronaldo, who was replaced by Jota when the latter made his international debut for Portugal in 2019, and the 40-year-old took to social media to pay an emotional tribute to his friend.

“It doesn't make sense. Just now we were together in the national team, just now you had gotten married,” Ronaldo posted. “To your family, your wife, and your children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world.

“I know you will always be with them. Rest in peace, Diogo and André. We will all miss you.”

Jota's close relationship to Ronaldo was revealed in a December 2020 interview with The Athletic, when Liverpool's relatively new signing at the time discussed who he looked up to most when he was growing up in Portugal.

“My earliest memories are from the 2004 Euros when Portugal reached the final and unfortunately we lost,” Jota reflected. “I was seven and I remember it well. Football has always been my passion.

“Cristiano Ronaldo was my hero. At that time, he was 19 but he was already playing at the Euros with so much quality. During my childhood, he was at Manchester United and Real Madrid. As Portuguese guys, we always looked upon him as our main reference.”

Jota represented Portugal 49 times in all, scoring the majority of his 14 international goals in Nations League action or World Cup qualifiers.