Diogo Jota was beloved by Liverpool fans and gave so much to the club, LFC correspondent Paul Gorst explains why he was so popular
Diogo Jota celebrates scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Everton at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on April 2, 2025.
(Image: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
It took Liverpool supporters barely eight minutes to fall in love with Diogo Jota in 2020. The surreal nature of pandemic football, however, meant Reds fans were made to wait to properly express it.
But by the time they were able to, 11 months on from his debut goal in a 3-1 win over Arsenal, match-goers ensured they made up for lost time when it came to serenading their latest hero. It was Jota, in fact, who had the honour of returning a precious commodity to the possession of Liverpool supporters that day in August 2021.
It was his goal, at Norwich City on the weekend of the new Premier League campaign, that was the first competitive strike that a full complement of fans were able to celebrate inside a football ground after around 18 months in the wilderness, owing to the effects of COVID-19.
As a Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup winner at Anfield, that may not go down as the player's most significant achievement, but on that particular day - August 14, 2021 - he allowed Liverpool fans to feel something that had previously been taken for granted; something that had been taken away from them for far too long.
The simple act of cheering a goal was something of a cathartic release at the time and they owed it all to Diogo.
It's worth reflecting on that as those associated with the club attempt to make sense of the horrendous news of his and brother Andre's deaths in Spain. That the Portugal international was just days removed from marrying his long-term partner Rute, at a ceremony attended by their three children, makes the car accident in Zamora even more unimaginably tragic.
The unassuming Jota was not someone who was at ease under the intense glare of the Premier League's spotlight. While fame and stardom come easy to some footballers of international repute, the Reds man was more comfortable allowing others to take centre stage.
At club level, he was always content to allow Mohamed Salah to bask in the blinding glow of supporters' adulation, while for Portugal, it is Cristiano Ronaldo whose star others have to revolve around.
Jota, as his playful goal celebrations hinted at, was often just as content building up a reputation as respected a gamer. For him, sticking the ball in the back of the net at Anfield was just something else he excelled at.
Football was a love of Jota's, but there was also space for other sports. An avid fan of horseracing, for example, he was said to have once showed up late for a scheduled media appearance because he had been glued to the coverage of Cheltenham Festival. A knowing smile and an acknowledgement that it was Gold Cup Friday was said to have been his way of avoiding censure.
Darts were also an interest - he struck a quick bond with Stephen Bunting when he visited the AXA Training Centre this year - while his understated wardrobe was often at odds with some of his more flamboyantly dressed colleagues.
Tracksuits and trainers were the order of the day for him, much to the amusement of his team-mates, and it is likely that was what he was decked out in on Crosby Beach when he was spotted on a bike ride the day after winning the Premier League in late April.
But while the picture of a jovial and easy-going family man is an accurate one, there was also the cerebral, deeply intelligent side to Jota when it came to his job. A football obsessive, the Portuguese impressed many with the depth of his knowledge and had been tipped to eventually become a manager by those who saw it all up close.
It was in front of goal where he shone brightest, becoming feared as one of the most polished finishers in the Premier League during his five years as a Reds player. Such was his output - 65 goals in 182 appearances - that his name became immortalised on the terraces with one of the catchiest Liverpool anthems in years.
Rarely was that sung with more gusto than when his two goals at Arsenal sent Jurgen Klopp's side to the Carabao Cup final of 2022, a trophy they ended up winning on penalties in dramatic style against Chelsea a few weeks later.
Inevitably the tributes have poured in from the great and the good of the game. Ronaldo, his great mentor at Portugal; the legendary Steven Gerrard; Jota's colleague Darwin Nunez, who is sadly now simply a friend in mourning. Portugal icon Luis Figo, who is famously name-checked in the Jota ditty, also paid his tribute on social media while Jurgen Klopp gave his own reaction to an incident that has rocked sport.
"This is a moment where I struggle!" Klopp wrote. "There must be a bigger purpose! But I can’t see it! I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother Andre.
"Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father! We will miss you so much! All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them! Rest in peace - Love J."
It's fitting that his final act as a Liverpool player came on May 26, when he and his team-mates marked their Premier League success with a city-wide parade of celebration. It was estimated by Liverpool City Council that over one million fans streamed out onto the streets to see their heroes in the flesh, with Jota on board.
Games are played and trophies are won but scenes like those are once in a career for players fortunate enough to be involved and he later posted a sample of the festivities on his social media accounts with the succinct caption: "Thank you Liverpool."
No, Diogo. Thank you.
It took Liverpool supporters barely eight minutes to fall in love with Diogo Jota. But it's a love that will now last forever.