Liverpool FC is a club built to withstand moments of adversity | OneFootball

Liverpool are in a dark place right now. A shadow has been cast over the club since the death of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva. We are all in a state of mourning for the foreseeable future.

It has not been uncommon for Liverpool to honour past players with tributes and wearing black armbands during matches, but it feels like the first time we've seen a current player pass away.

We are in uncharted waters. Players are grieving and fearful of how brutal life can be for someone so loved by many to be taken from us in an instant, as a result of a freak car accident.

The only somewhat comparable incidents can be the concern we all felt when Jurgen Klopp's mother passed away in 2021, or when Alisson Becker's father died around the same time, even extending to when Luis Diaz's father was kidnapped. The club has been through a lot of trauma.

This most recent situation with Jota is yet another reminder of how precious life is and how we must make the most of the time we have. Everything can change in an instant, with no warning or notice.

But if you have followed the club over the last five years, then you will know that Liverpool experienced their fair share of adversity and every time we have come back stronger than ever.

In a sporting sense, you can point to the disappointments in the 2021/22 and 2023/24 title races, and the Champions League final loss in 2021/22, each of which were devastating. In those instances, we went through anguish watching the players get over the losses on the pitch.

But outside of the sport, you have real life and those sad times can be looked at in perspective.

Far more devastating incidents have unfolded in recent times, not least the chaos that fans experienced in Paris during the 2021/22 Champions League final, the terrifying events at the end of the Premier League trophy parade just less than six weeks ago and now this Jota news.

In not wanting to take you back to Paris, now that UEFA have eventually apologised for their failings, Liverpool were able to move on as a club, not to forget what happened, but to accept it.

With regard to the trophy parade, that will take a lot longer for people to move past. The people that were left injured in the incident and those who witnessed it unfold will be scarred for life. It was one of the most horrific things I have ever seen and the criminal investigation is still taking place.

And the news regarding Jota is merely a couple of days old. It's fresh and it will be in the forefront of our minds for a while to come. It's like losing a best friend or a family member. We adored him.

So by no means am I suggesting that anyone should be attempting to 'move on'. Grief takes time to work through and the sadness you feel when you read tributes about him and watch compilations of his career is merely evidence that you cared about him. That is something we're all going through.

The point of this article is simply to offer hope for the future, a means to help anyone struggling right now by recognising that everyone connected to the club is strong and will be able to get through this.

Every club has experienced tragedy, some more so than others, it doesn't matter. But in Liverpool FC, you have a club built on withstanding moments of adversity and coming out stronger.

The first games of the season - in just over five weeks at Wembley in the Community Shield and in just less than six weeks at Anfield in the Premier League - feel like ages away, while simultaneously far too close for comfort. It's unimaginable to consider finding a clear headspace to compete again.

Even the players returning to training for pre-season - which will now be Monday - feels wrong. Jota and Andre's funeral was only on Saturday morning in Portugal. Their losses are still raw.

Transfers feel irrelevant as we all need to keep each other close in our time of need.

The remaining time before the 2025/26 season kicks off will be spent dealing with the emotions we are all going through. When we come together again, then we can embrace in each others comfort.

A community of Reds and football fans around the world, who know what it is like to feel how each other does, is bonded through our shared admiration for the beautiful game, the highs and lows of competitive football, and the trauma we have all experienced. We all have empathy for each other.

So in time, the adversity we are feeling will pass and we are built to deal with it, despite how many of you may feel right now. The loss of Jota is enormous, it will impact us through the season and for the foreseeable, but his spirit will life on in everyone who remembers him, so feel emboldened by the fact that you had the privilege of seeing him wear the Red shirt, contributing to Liverpool FC.

We've been through heartache before, and will experience more in the future. It is one of life's most cruel aspects. But we are built to withstand them, it was just never meant to be straightforward.