Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca said he will allow Pedro Neto to make his own decision on whether to play in the club's Club World Cup quarterfinal against Palmeiras.
The Chelsea winger was a close friend of Diogo Jota, and following the tragic passing of the Liverpool forward and his brother Andre Silva on Thursday, Maresca has said the club will support Neto in his time of mourning.
Neto played with Jota at Wolverhampton Wanderers and on the international scene for Portugal. The 25-year-old was absent from Chelsea’s pre-match training session in Miami ahead of the clash against Palmeiras. The Blues, like Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, began the session with a minute’s silence in honor of Jota.
Neto has been given an indefinite leave of absence, and it remains unclear whether he is available for the quarterfinal, which kicks off at 21:00 ET (18:00 PT and 02:00 BST on Friday morning in the UK).
Maresca began his pre-match press conference by paying tribute to Jota and his brother, Andre. “Yeah, it's a very sad day. I struggle to find words because it's very difficult,” he said.
“You know, the feeling that you are, that you feel a little bit helpless in this kind of situation. The only thing I can say, all my love to his family, the people that at this moment, it's a big tragedy for them.
Jose Sa, Pedro Neto, Ruben Neves and Diogo Jota
Neto played alongside Jota at club and international level
“And then in terms of Pedro, he's very sad, probably more than sad, but we are also close to Pedro to support him in this moment.”
Asked whether Neto will play against Palmerias, Maresca responded: “It's completely Pedro's decision. I had a chat this morning with Pedro. We support him.
“Any decision he will take is the correct one, and we are going to support him in any case. So it doesn't matter if we'll be in the pitch or not. Tomorrow, we'll see how he is feeling. But in any case, we're going to support him."
Tributes are laid for the forward at Anfield, where Liverpool play
Tributes continue to be laid outside Anfield as a mark of respect for Diogo Jota (Image: Getty Images)
Marc Cucurella was also present at the press conference and said: “It's a bad moment. We send all our love to the family, the wife, the kids, and I do it from me, the whole Chelsea squad, and football.
"Football is not important at times like this. The most important thing is that we show respect and all our love.
"I saw it as soon as I woke up.
"It was a difficult moment because these things can happen to all of us in any moment and then you start to think if you don’t feel good, or you don’t give 100 percent, or feel s--- when these things happen, it’s important to be happy and live life every day."