The wife of Diogo Jota's former Portugal team-mate has been compelled to release a statement after a tragic car crash claimed the lives of the 28-year-old and his brother. Confusion arose because her husband shares the same name, André Silva, as Jota's late brother, who was just 26.
The Liverpool forward and his younger sibling were mourned at a funeral service in their native Gondomar, close to Porto, on Saturday. The ceremony and vigil saw a continuous stream of friends, family, and former colleagues come to pay tribute to the brothers on Friday and Saturday. Among those present to say goodbye was RB Leipzig and Portugal striker André Silva, 29. Sharing a name with Jota's sibling has led to some mistakenly thinking he had passed in the accident. Maria Rodrigues, Silva's spouse, addressed the mix-up on social media on Sunday, stating she had received messages of concern for her own husband and sought to clarify the situation.
"I have been receiving many kind and concerned messages lately," Rodrigues wrote on her Instagram story. "There seems to have been some confusion regarding the recent devastating news.
"I want to clarify that this information is not about my husband, André Silva. Our hearts go out to the families affected by this tragedy. We are thinking of them at this incredibly difficult time."
Silva, who concluded his youth career with Porto, hails from Baguim do Monte, a parish in Gondomar where Jota and his brother also called home.
Breaking into Porto's first team led to his £35million move to AC Milan in 2017. Silva then experienced loan stints at Sevilla and Frankfurt prior to sealing a permanent transfer to the German club in 2020. Last year saw Silva sign with Leipzig and he has since been on loan to Real Sociedad and Werder Bremen.
The 29-year-old was in Gondomar last Friday with his wife, Rodrigues, paying tribute to his former team-mate by laying flowers at the Chapel of the Resurrection. Having played alongside Jota for Porto 29 times, combining for seven goals, Silva took to social media to express his grief after hearing about the tragic car crash.
"I cannot believe it," he wrote. "We take every day for granted, but life can be brutally fragile. There are no words that will ever do. This doesn't make sense. Only pain and silence weigh.
"We shared moments on and off the field, laughter, sacrifices, victories, simple conversations that gain more weight today. You will always be with us, in everything we were and are. You'll always be part of us. Rest in peace, Jota and Andre."