Pundits and journalists fume as moment of remembrance for Diogo Jota is disgustingly marred | OneFootball

Diogo Jota was remembered with a minute’s silence prior to the Community Shield this afternoon – or at least that was the original intention.

Shortly before kick-off, Liverpool legend Ian Rush and Crystal Palace co-owner/chairman Steve Parish laid a wreath in front of Reds fans at Wembley in remembrance of the Portuguese forward, a moment which was applauded by both sets of supporters.

Unfortunately, a planned moment of silence in memory of the 28-year-old was cut short after a few mindless ‘fans’ inside the stadium jeered and chanted ‘Eagles’, with Kopites aiming loud boos at the perpetrators.

It was noted by the Liverpool Echo and The Independent that the original heckling came from a small minority, with the overwhelming majority of Palace supporters respectfully observing the tribute to Jota and ordering the guilty parties to cut out their idiotic actions. Unfortunately, those pleas fell on deaf ears.

Idiotic jeering of Jota tributes is rightly condemned

A number of journalists and co-commentators were rightly left fuming over the disgusting lack of respect for the former Reds attacker and his brother Andre Silva, who also died in that fatal car crash in northern Spain on 3 July.

Darren Fletcher on TNT Sports lamented (via Irish Independent): “Why on earth there are a certain few inside the stadium who would spoil that moment is absolutely beyond me”, with colleague Ally McCoist adding: “That just defies logic.”

On X, Henry Winter politely described it as ‘not the most dignified of starts‘ to proceedings, while Liverpool Echo’s Paul Gorst labelled it ‘a real shame‘ on X, with his journalistic colleague Lewis Steele far more forthright as he dubbed the perpetrators ‘scumbags‘.

(Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Shame on those responsible for disrespecting Jota and his family

To those who respectfully observed the pre-match tributes to Jota and his brother at Wembley, thank you. Credit also to anyone in the Palace end who called out the perpetrators for disrupting the moment’s silence.

Quite how anyone can go to a football match and think it’s acceptable to disrespect two people who lost their lives in tragic circumstances is incomprehensible and disgusting. We’re all for rival fans exchanging banter about what happens on the pitch, but mocking tragedy is just not acceptable, full stop.

What must the Liverpool players who lost a teammate and a friend – and the family who lost two of their beloved – have been thinking when they heard the tribute being sullied by a few idiots who have zero respect for human life and brought shame on themselves with their actions.

Reds fans have become far too accustomed to tragedy chanting at matches over the years, and sadly they’re still having to put up with reprehensible behaviour from an idiotic minority who have no business attending a football match.