Liverpool legend Ian Rush has shared a heartbreaking message explaining why he was unable to attend Diogo Jota’s funeral. The club’s all-time leading goalscorer remains a familiar presence at Anfield, often seen sitting alongside fellow icon Kenny Dalglish at nearly every home match.
The 63-year-old had been invited to the funeral of Jota, 28, and his younger brother, Andre Silva, 26, after the siblings tragically lost their lives in a road traffic accident in Spain last week. The devastating news has triggered an outpouring of grief and love across the football world. Tributes have flooded in from the likes of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, while the club have vowed to "immortalise" the number 20 shirt.
Rush was unable to attend the funeral - held on Saturday in a town just outside Porto, at the very same venue where he had been married only weeks earlier - because he was also helping with his brother's funeral. Despite the heavy toll of recent weeks, Rush still managed to share a beautiful message, honouring Jota and his brother with deep sincerity and warmth.
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The Welshman revealed that he couldn't attend Jota's funeral because of his brother's passing last week, but ensured that his message in honour of the Portugal international was not about his loss but the character of the club, Jota, and how he will “never be forgotten because he has embraced everything Liverpool.”
“Rest in peace, Diogo and Andre,” Rush wrote on Instagram. “At Liverpool, we have always regarded ourselves as one big family. Now one of our family has gone, so we all have to join together and help one another. The last few days have shown that. I was invited and intended to attend Diogo’s funeral, but my brother Gerald had passed away last week, I was in the middle of helping with Gerald’s funeral when the news broke about Diogo. It’s been an incredibly difficult time, and I just wasn’t able to make it.
“He hadn’t been well for a while, but like with Diogo, it hasn’t really sunk in yet. Diogo’s wife, Rute, their three wonderful children, his parents, and extended family are enduring an unimaginable loss. This heartbreaking accident claimed both Diogo and his brother, André Silva. We grieve deeply for them both.
He continued: “Diogo was a great player, probably the best natural finisher at the club. He always gave 100 per cent. He would make a difference whether he started or came on as a substitute. He would never dominate the headlines and that was the same off the pitch.
“This is especially hard for the Liverpool players who will soon be back in pre-season training. They are just expected to get on with the job but they are just human beings at the end of the day who experience the same emotions as the rest of us. Some players will be affected more than others. I think right now it’s been hard for everyone to take in what has happened.
"You try to continue as normal, but that is impossible. It’s so weird, and for some there will be a delayed reaction because the enormity of what has happened hasn’t sunk in yet. I believe when someone dies you get on with things, and it’s only a few weeks later that the full extent of the awful loss gets you. You know you have to get on with life but that’s hard. Diogo will never be forgotten because he has embraced everything Liverpool.
“Our lad from Portugal. Forever.”