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Diogo Jota was, by his own admission, “a small guy” from a northern Portuguese town who had a big dream – to play Premier League football.
Jota, who died in a car accident on Thursday aged 28, achieved that dream and much, much more.
In the last weeks of his life, Jota enjoyed some incredible highs.
He became a Premier League champion with Liverpool in May, featuring off the bench on the final day against Crystal Palace.
In early June, he secured further silverware with Portugal, as part of their squad which won the Nations League.
On June 22, he married his partner Rute Cardoso, the mother of his three children, describing it on social media hours before his death as “a day we will never forget”.

Jota grew up in Gondomar, and his parents Joaquim and Isabel were still paying for him to play for the local club until the age of 16.
Gondomar’s website describes the club as “a story of passion and dedication” and there can surely be few better embodiments of those qualities than Jota.
Speaking to Sky Sports in 2022, he said: “This hunger has been with me ever since I can remember. In my youth, growing up, I never played for the big teams.
“I had a few teammates who went to Porto or Benfica. I had trials there but I never stayed. I was one of the better ones, but never the best.
“From the moment that I had that opportunity, I never dropped it again. I think when we are young we always believe. But I probably did not believe that I could reach Liverpool. I just took it day by day.”
He turned professional at Paços de Ferreira in 2013 and earned what looked like a dream move to Spanish giants Atletico Madrid in 2016.
However, he did not play a single game and moved back to northern Portugal on loan to play for Porto.
He moved on loan for a second time in the summer of 2017 to Wolves, scoring 18 goals in 46 matches as he helped the club achieve promotion to the Premier League.
His efforts earned him a permanent contract, and the chance to fulfil his childhood dream of playing in the English top flight.
He again hit double figures for goals as Wolves not only survived but thrived, finishing seventh in that first season and helping them qualify for the Europa League, where they would reach the quarter-finals in the following campaign, which was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
His love for football was matched by his love and proficiency for gaming, particularly Fifa – he even won the inaugural ePremier League tournament in 2020.
Jota’s form earned him a move to champions Liverpool in September 2020, where he was set the mission by Jürgen Klopp, the Reds’ head coach at the time, to challenge the established front three of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane.
He hit the ground running, with a goal eight minutes into his debut against Arsenal, and never looked back.
A danger with either foot, he was a key contributor from the start and off the bench as the Reds came close to a quadruple in 2021-22 but ultimately came away with a domestic cup double, having lost out to Manchester City in the league by a point and Real Madrid in the Champions League.
His worth to the club was reflected in the offer of a new contract in the summer of 2022 until 2027.
He told Sky Sports in the summer that the contract extension was signed: “The hard thing is not to reach the top of the mountain but to stay there. That phrase makes a lot of sense, certainly to me.
“It is the hardest bit because you always have people who want to reach there for the first time. You can never let them have more will than you.”
As if to prove his point, Jota kept on climbing and earlier this summer became a Premier League champion.
He told the Liverpool official website last month: “To arrive at this particular season with the title that I’ve been chasing for a lot of years and in the best league in the world – for me where I dreamed to play as a kid – it’s a moment I will cherish forever.
“It is a remarkable achievement for a small guy that came from Gondomar, where I had this dream. To arrive at this moment was outstanding.”
Jota’s younger brother Andre Silva, also a professional footballer, died alongside him in the accident in Zamora, Spain, on Thursday morning.
He is survived by his parents Joaquim and Isabel, his wife Rute and their three children.


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Diogo Jota: the small guy with big dreams who became a Premier League champion

Liverpool’s Diogo Jota lifts the Premier League trophy at the end of the game against Crystal Palace at Anfield. Photo: AFP

A Liverpool fan leaves a tribute in memory of Liverpool player Diogo Jota, at Anfield. Photo: AP

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Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota has died, aged 28, following a car crash in northwest Spain. Photo: AFP

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Johnny So (front row, centre) at training with Real Betis’ academy. Photo: Handout

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So Loi-keung with Johnny during his visit to Spain. Photo: Handout

Sport

Football

Husband, father, Premier League champion, Diogo Jota died on Thursday at the age of 28


Husband, father, Premier League champion, Diogo Jota died on Thursday at the age of 28.


Obituaries

Diogo Jota

Sadio Mane

Diogo Jota: the small guy with big dreams who became a Premier League champion

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Husband, father, Premier League champion, Diogo Jota died on Thursday at the age of 28

Husband, father, Premier League champion, Diogo Jota died on Thursday at the age of 28