The wife of RB Leipzig star Andre Silva has revealed that she has been receiving messages of condolence following the deaths of Liverpool star Diogo Jota and his brother.
Jota's brother was also called Andre Silva, leaving some fans to incorrectly believe that Leizpig striker Andre Silva — who was a teammate of Jota's at Porto and with the Portugal national team — had died.
Silva's wife, Maria Rodrigues, took to Instagram to clarify the situation. She wrote: "I've been receiving many kind and concerned messages lately. There seems to have been some confusion related to recent heartbreaking news, and I want to clarify that these reports are not about my husband, Andre Silva.
"Our hearts go out to the families affected by this tragedy. We are thinking of them during this incredibly difficult time."
Leipzig's Silva paid tribute to his old teammate in a post on Instagram over the weekend. The pair played together at club level during the 2016-17 season, which Jota spent on loan at Porto from Atletico Madrid, while they also played many times together for Portugal.
"I can not believe it..." Silva 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 no sense. Only pain and silence that weighs.
"Shared moments on and off the field.. laughter, sacrifices, victories, simple conversations that gain another weight today. You will always be with us, in everything we were and are! You'll always be a part of us!"
Silva and wife Rodrigues were among the thousands who paid tribute at the brothers' public wake in Gondomar, on the outskirts of Porto, last Friday.
The deaths of Jota and his younger brother last Thursday sent the sporting world into mourning, with the global soccer community uniting in grief.
Jota and brother Andre Silva died in a car crash last week
Jota and brother Andre Silva died in a car crash last week (Image: Porto)
The pair were journeying from Portugal to the Spanish port city of Santander, from where they intended to travel on a ferry to Portsmouth ahead of returning to Liverpool when they died in a crash.
Jota had been advised against air travel after undergoing lung surgery earlier in the summer.
The pair's joint funeral took place in Gondomar, where they grew up together, on Saturday.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk arrived with a floral tribute in his hands, as did Andy Robertson, while Liverpool head coach Arne Slot and several other Reds players also turned out to bid their final farewells to Jota.