Liverpool manager Arne Slot has paid an emotional tribute to Diogo Jota following the striker’s tragic death in a car crash, IsaGoal can report.
Jota, just 28, passed away in a devastating accident in Portugal alongside his brother Andre, shaking the football world and leaving Liverpool in deep mourning.
The club have retired Jota’s No. 20 shirt permanently—a historic gesture never made before in Liverpool’s long, storied history.
Arne Slot, visibly moved, shared: “We will always carry him with us in our hearts, in our thoughts, wherever we go. Maybe especially in difficult moments.”
He added: “To retire his shirt is the one thing we could, should and have done.”
Jota’s memory will live on across all levels of Liverpool, as the No. 20 shirt will no longer be worn—not just in the men’s senior team, but also in the women’s squad, U21s, and academy sides.
The decision was made following discussions with his widow, Rute, whom Jota married just 11 days before his untimely passing.
As Liverpool prepare to face Preston in a pre-season match, Slot admitted returning to football has been emotionally difficult.
“Nothing seems important if we think of what has happened,” he said. “Maybe the best thing is to handle this like Jota would—he was always himself.”
At Jota’s funeral in Gondomar, Portugal, Liverpool’s first-team players—including Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson—paid tribute by carrying wreaths shaped like his No. 20 shirt.