He wore number 20. He lifted number 20.

His name is Diogo Jota.

The cruellest of cruel reminders that life can take the most devastating turn at what is supposed to be the most joyous time, the Portuguese attacker died alongside his younger brother - Andre Silva - in the early hours of the morning on Thursday, July 3, 2025.

Liverpool and the Portugal national team confirmed the unimaginably painful loss following the first reports from Spain, where Jota and his brother were travelling along a motorway when their Lamborghini suffered a tyre blowout and tragically veered off the road.

At the time of his premature passing, the late 28-year-old was basking in the bliss of not only Premier League glory, but his recent marriage to the love of his life, whom he had already built a life together with their three children.

The couple tied the knot a mere 10 days before Jota's death, and one cannot begin to fathom the inconceivable heartbreak all those close to him are going through.

Everyone at Sports Mole sends their deepest condolences to Jota's family, friends and teammates, as we remember a man who not only lit up Anfield with his exceptional attacking qualities, but his infectious, jovial personality.

Diogo Jota: Beginnings

Jota's journey into the professional game began on the date of his birth - December 4, 1996 - and the Porto native first pulled on the jersey for current fourth-tier side Gondomar SC, quickly rising through the ranks at the humble Sao Miguel outfit before being noticed by Pacos de Ferreira.

The 16-year-old kid with the world at his feet earned his big break with the Beavers, who gave him the platform to showcase his talents as Portugal's newest teenage prodigy, providing 32 goal contributions in just 47 appearances for the Porto-based side after making his senior professional debut in October 2014.

When Jota struck his first two goals at once for Pacos, in a 3-2 victory over Coimbra towards the end of the 2014-15 season, the forward became the youngest player to ever score for the club at the age of 17 years, 10 months and 15 days, a record that stood for almost six years.

A new long-term contract soon followed for the newest jewel in the Pacos crown, who repaid his team's faith in the best way he knew; scoring goals.

The 2015-16 season was one of significant personal development for the late Portuguese, who was responsible for 12 goals and eight assists in that Liga Nos campaign, soon to attract glances from one of the biggest clubs on the Iberian Peninsula.

Diogo Jota: Rise to stardom

Still in his teenage years, Jota captured the attention of Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone in 2016, commanding a £6.1m fee to depart Pacos and try his hand at La Liga football with one of the most celebrated teams in the land.

However, it was decided that a stint at hometown giants Porto would serve Jota best, and so it proved; never one to be content with one and done, Jota's first three goals for the Dragons all arrived in the same game, a heroic hat-trick in a 4-0 win over Nacional in October 2016.

A few weeks down the line, Jota further entrenched himself in the hearts of Porto fans with a pair of assists in a 2-0 triumph over Arouca, while also contributing to the team's progression to the last 16 of the Champions League with a strike in a 5-0 thumping of Leicester City.

The pressure of donning the blue and white stripes did not weigh heavily at all on Jota's embryonic shoulders, and before long, the Portuguese had earned the right to test his mettle in the unforgiving - but extremely rewarding - world of English football.

Then-Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers offered him a platform to exhibit and further enhance his burgeoning attacking reputation, and under the wing of compatriot Nuno Espirito Santo, Jota took the second tier by storm in the 2017-18 campaign.

Jota's stellar 17 goals and six assists were pivotal to Wolves' rise back to the pinnacle of the English game, one that the forward would stick around for, as the Old Gold struck an agreement to sign him permanently from Atletico Madrid.

Seamlessly transitioning from Championship to Premier League football - as part of a deadly double act with Raul Jimenez - Jota had a direct hand in 14 goals in his first English top-flight campaign, where Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all failed to keep him at bay.

Also etching his name into the Wolves annals, the striker became the first player to score a Premier League hat-trick for the Old Gold in a 4-3 win over Leicester in January 2019, and just the second Portuguese to do so in the competition after none other than Cristiano Ronaldo.

Now regarded as a ruthless and versatile finisher who rarely passed up opportunities when they came his way, Jota's 2019-20 season was not so prolific in the Premier League, but he added a crucial string to his bow with a plethora of standout Europa League performances.

Following a phenomenal three goals and five assists in six qualifying fixtures, Jota remarkably bagged back-to-back hat-tricks against Besiktas and Espanyol in the tournament proper, helping Wolves reach the last eight either side of the COVID-enforced hiatus.

By the time the 2019-20 season concluded, Jota had produced 44 goals and 19 assists in 131 matches for Santo's side, form that attracted the attention of the team who had just conquered the land.

Diogo Jota: The Liverpool days

Joining Jurgen Klopp's ranks of Premier League and Champions League winners would be intimidating for many a seasoned professional, but not Jota, who continued his trend of making club history within just a few months of penning his long-term Liverpool contract.

After just 10 games in the famous red strip, Jota had already scored seven goals - no man since Robbie Fowler had enjoyed such an explosive start for the club - including Liverpool's 10,000th senior men's goal in a 2-0 Champions League success over FC Midtjylland.

The match balls kept on coming for Jota too; a hat-trick versus Atalanta BC soon followed, as he ended his first Anfield campaign with a highly respectable 13 goals, further proving his capabilities as an extremely adaptable player, able to confidently take the next career leap and fit right in both on and off the pitch.

The forward's first slice of major club silverware came in the 2021-22 EFL Cup, and a highly deserved one too; he was one of the scorers in the penalty shootout success over Chelsea after bagging both goals in the 2-0 semi-final second-leg away win at Arsenal.

By the end of his second campaign, Jota was also proudly sporting an FA Cup winners' medal around his neck and boasted a terrific 21 strikes across all competitions, ensuring that the Liverpool attack would be in safe hands once the iconic Mohamed Salah-Roberto Firmino-Sadio Mane triumvirate inevitably broke up.

However, injuries prevented the former Wolves and Atletico man from truly kicking on in the 2022-23 campaign, although he nevertheless displayed his perpetual ruthlessness when leading the line or operating out wide, as well as a sense of selflessness to provide eight assists across all competitions three seasons ago.

Among the most notable of Jota's strikes in 2022-23 were no doubt his bedlam-inducing late winner in the 4-3 success over Tottenham Hotspur, and the brace that ultimately proved vital in a 3-2 triumph versus Nottingham Forest at Anfield.

Rarely one to be brought up for indiscipline on the pitch, Jota did not start 2023-24 as he meant to go on, receiving just the second red card of his senior club career in Liverpool's controversial 2-1 defeat away to Spurs.

However, Jota inevitably atoned for that misdemeanour in the final third, banking another 15 goals in all competitions when not in the care of the medical team and adding another FA Cup winners' medal to his ever-growing collection of team honours, as well as a Premier League Player of the Month prize for January.

The latter award represented one of the few individual accolades that Jota was bestowed with, but personal prizes meant little to him when compared with team triumph, and his ultimate goal in English football was soon achieved.

While injuries and a loss of form reared their ugly heads again in 2024-25, Jota was a Premier League champion, hoisting the trophy aloft after an incredibly fitting final Liverpool goal - the one that propelled them to a 1-0 Merseyside derby win over Everton.

Diogo Jota: A national treasure

Achieving success in two different shades of red, Jota was something of a late bloomer on the international stage but again took little time to get up to speed alongside his more experienced counterparts, whom he shadowed during their run to UEFA Nations League glory in 2019.

Jota was a couple of weeks shy of his 23rd birthday by the time he won his first cap for the senior side; by the time of his death, he had been directly involved in an eye-catching 26 goals in 49 appearances for his country, whom he scored his first for against Croatia in September 2020.

Less than a year later, Jota was undeniably Euro 2020 material and made his mark in the 4-2 group-stage loss to Germany, even if his goal and assist in that tie were largely inconsequential.

However, what was certainly not inconsequential were Jota's goal against Turkey and assist versus North Macedonia to help ensure Portugal's place at the 2022 World Cup, although he would cruelly miss the global gathering in Qatar while he battled back from a calf problem.

The late striker also had to take more a backseat role at both Euro 2024 and the recent Nations League finals, but he nevertheless contributed to the latter success with an assist for Goncalo Ramos in the quarter-final thriller with Denmark, before emerging off the bench to help see out the final success vs. Spain.

The latter appearance on June 8, 2025 would mark Jota's last-ever professional match, and an especially poignant one, as the forward revelled in the happiest of happy days with those nearest and dearest to him.

Remembering Diogo Jota and Andre Silva

For 90 minutes on a Saturday afternoon, it is easy to forget that footballers are also human beings. When heartbreaking events like this occur, it is more important than ever to remember the man beyond the boots.

Jota could so often be seen sporting a smile that simply made others want to smile, and the Portuguese's humble, low-key approach to life only increased his popularity at any and every club he represented.

Off the pitch, Jota was just like many of those who adored him so; a lover of the FIFA series, and an especially gifted gamer at that.

But above all else, he was a beloved son, an adored father, a loyal husband and a cherished brother, and the forward's sibling who tragically lost his life alongside the late Liverpool man will not be forgotten either.

A former Porto and Pacos youth product, Andre Silva soon carried on his brother's legacy at Gondamar and became a fundamental part of the furniture at Penafiel as a reliable attacking midfielder.

No words can truly do Jota and Silva justice while their loved ones try to comprehend this gut-wrenching loss, which naturally brings an immeasurable degree of sadness and grief, but there is some solace in the fact that the two brothers provided a plethora of memorable moments and captured the hearts of many on the hallowed turf.

Rest in peace Diogo Jota (04/12/1996 - 03/07/2025)

Rest in peace Andre Silva (28/04/2000 - 03/07/2025)

Written by
Ben Knapton