Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias issue words in final respects to Liverpool’s Diogo Jota in Gondomar | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias have issued their final respects to the late Diogo Jota in his hometown of Gondomar in Portugal this weekend.

The Liverpool forward died in a car crash last week aged 28, alongside his brother and fellow professional footballer Andre Silva (25) in the accident, which took place in the Spanish province of Zamora.

The Guardia Civil told BBC Sport that the brothers had died around 00:30 local time on Thursday, after their Lamborghini left the road following a tyre blowout while overtaking another vehicle and then catching fire.

Diogo Jota had only recently married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children, with their ceremony taking place just 11 days before the road traffic accident in Spain.

Issuing a statement on the accident and death of their attacking star, Liverpool said they “are devastated” at the loss, while his former club Wolves said in their own statement, “We are heartbroken”.

Over the course of Friday and Saturday, Manchester City’s Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva joined family and friends in the town of Gondomar in Portugal to pay their final respects to Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva.

Issuing a short interview this weekend, Bernardo Silva said of his compatriot, “I can’t even imagine the pain of the family, of Rute [Diogo Jota’s wife], the children, the parents. For Andre and for Jota.

“A great friend of all of us. His career, although not most important, speaks for itself. He didn’t train at any big team and took the most difficult path. His passion, will and determination allowed him to succeed in life and have a brilliant career.”

The Manchester City midfielder continued, “More important, as a person… the memories that remain… Jota will always be in our hearts. He will always be present at every breakfast, lunch, dinner, national team get-together, PlayStation or card game.”

Earlier in the week, Ruben Dias penned on his social media channels, “I still can’t believe it. You won your first Premier League, we won Nations League together, you married… It doesn’t make any sense.”

The central defender added, “We won’t forget you; the man… the father… the brother… the son and the tireless and talented companion you have always been on the field. May you both rest in peace.”

Diogo Jota and André Silva were honoured by family, friends and teammates at a joint funeral on Saturday, as hundreds of locals and supporters gathered at the Igreja Matriz in Gondomar, where the brothers are from.

The funeral also brought together huge names from across the football world, including Jota’s teammates Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson, who were seen carrying floral tributes into the church ahead of the ceremony.

Al Hilal’s Joao Cancelo and Ruben Neves – who were visibly upset during a minute’s silence at the FIFA Club World Cup before their defeat to Fluminense in the quarter-final – also made the funeral, with the latter carrying Jota’s coffin into the church.

Many of those at the ceremony wore football shirts and carried merchandise from the different teams across Portugal and abroad where Diogo Jota and Andre Silva, who played for local club Penafiel, spent some time in.