Liverpool pay emotional tribute to Diogo Jota on late star's 29th birthday

Jota lost his life in a car accident when travelling back to the United Kingdom for pre-season training. News of his passing stunned the sporting world, with messages of support flooding in from every corner of the globe.

A memorial remains in place outside Anfield, with fans and players able to add their own offerings to that, while Liverpool supporters continue to honour their fallen hero by singing his song in the 20th minute of every home game.

Liverpool have said in a social media post: “Today, as every day, we remember Diogo Jota on what would have been his 29th birthday,' Liverpool wrote. "All of our love, thoughts and prayers continue to be with his wife Rute, his children, parents and all of his family and friends, as well as those of his brother, Andre. Forever in our hearts, forever our number 20.”

Liverpool have retired Jota’s No.20 jersey and vowed to honour the rest of his contract - which was worth £140,000-a-week - with said funds being paid to Jota’s widow Rute Cardoso and his children.

Jota helped the Reds to Premier League title glory last season, but Arne Slot’s side have struggled for consistency in defence of that crown. Questions have been asked of how much the death of Jota has affected players that lost a close friend.

Former Liverpool midfielder Don Hutchison has told TNT Sports: “It's a very uncomfortable conversation when we talk about Diogo Jota. I just know from what I would be like, very emotional, I'd be struggling big time. And I don't know how you explain it if you're Arne Slot, because he's trying to manage the football club, he's trying to manage his players.

“At the same time, he's still grieving a bit, he can look at his players and have the conversation and look into their eyes. Maybe it's Mo Salah who's struggling, they're all probably struggling, and it's just an uncomfortable conversation as a footballer. When you're going through such a bad time, it's so horrendous. Not just the football, but away from the pitch.

“I heard Andy Robertson talking after the Scotland game, a glorious night for Scotland going to the World Cup. The first person he mentioned was Jota, and he was in tears, he was in bits, saying: 'I thought about him every single day.' It's a very difficult conversation to have, I would imagine, for Arne Slot to his group of players, and how they try and respond.”

Slot has said of dealing with tragedy away from the field: “I think it is good for us to remind (ourselves) of him every time possible because of the person and player he was. But it is impossible to measure what it does to the players and then to measure what it does to our results.

“The last thing I would do is use it as an excuse because I simply don’t know. What I do know is we miss the player, that is 100 per cent sure, and we also miss the person. But I cannot measure what impact that has on our performances, let alone results. That is impossible to say. We will never use it as an excuse because that doesn’t feel right.”

He added on whether Liverpool need to be given some leeway when performances are assessed: “We are always judged, sometimes fair, sometimes unfair. But in these moments of time I also think how must it feel for his wife and his children because that is so much harder for them than it is us but that we miss the player and the person, that is completely clear.”

Jota made 182 appearances for Liverpool, having joined them from Wolves in 2020, scoring 65 goals. He won the Premier League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup with the Reds, while also landing two UEFA Nations League crowns when earning 49 caps for Portugal.