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Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro (left) paid his respects to the Jota brothers. |
Early in the morning, Portuguese President Marcelo de Sousa (center) and his entourage paid their respects to Jota and his brother Silva, two players who recently died in a traffic accident in Spain. The ceremony took place from 4/7 at the resurrection chapel in the town of Gondomar, the hometown of the two players.
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"Football is in mourning. Jota was an icon, a talent of Portuguese football," said Portuguese Football Federation President Pedro Proenca on the sidelines of the memorial service. |
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Gondomar residents offer condolences to the grandfather of Jota and Silva, the two players who died at the ages of 28 and 26. |
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The father of Jota and Silva (center) is trying to overcome the pain. |
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Super agent Jorge Mendes (right) offers condolences to the mother of the two players. |
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Porto President Andre Villas-Boas, the club where Jota played during the 2016-2017 season, attended the memorial service. "We were working with Mendes to bring Jota back to Porto," Villas-Boas said. "The expected time was 2026 or 2027." |
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Julian Ward (gray jacket), Liverpool's Sporting Director, attended the funeral. Previously, manager Arne Slot and players Virgil Van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, Andy Robertson, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa, Caoimhin Kelleher, and Jordan Henderson were present. |
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Bernardo Silva, Jota's Portugal teammate who recently won the 2025 Nations League with him, arrived at the funeral looking distraught. |
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Striker Darwin Nunez and his girlfriend bid farewell to their teammate. |
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Diogo Dalot, Man Utd and Portugal defender, still can't believe the loss of his teammate with whom he won the Nations League in early June. |
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Thousands of residents and fans came to the Gondomar chapel to pay their respects to the Jota brothers. |
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The funeral will take place at 10 a.m. today, 5/7, Lisbon time, which is 3 p.m. Hanoi time. |
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The scene at the Gondomar chapel, where the bodies of the two players lie for fans, friends, and relatives to say their goodbyes. |
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On 2/7, Jota dined with his wife, Rute Cardoso, and their three children in Porto, Portugal. That evening, he and Andre Silva drove to Santander, Spain, to catch a ferry to England. Jota had recently undergone surgery for a collapsed lung and was advised by doctors not to fly to avoid pressure on his lungs.
The accident occurred shortly after the car crossed the Portugal-Spain border at 12:30 a.m. on 3/7. According to police, the car blew a tire while accelerating past another vehicle, veered off the road, and caught fire.
Ngoc Tuan
Photo: AFP, Reuters, Sun, CLB, PA, AS
