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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Oli Gent

'Forever Liverpool's No20': Premier League champions retire shirt number to honour Diogo Jota

Number 20: Diogo Jota - (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Liverpool will retire their No20 shirt in honour of Diogo Jota, who died tragically in a car crash along with his brother Andre Silva.

The Reds liaised with Jota’s wife Rute Cardoso and the player’s family, announcing that the forward “will forever be Liverpool’s No20”.

Jota and his brother were devastatingly killed in Spain on Thursday, July 3, when their car veered off the road after a tyre blowout.

The Portugal international was en route back to England to report for pre-season training, and had been advised by doctors to not fly back after having minor surgery on an injury.

A joint funeral was held for the pair in Gondomar, their hometown, on Saturday, and there was a strong Liverpool contingent in attendance.

In a statement, the Premier League champions said that Jota’s shirt number "will be retired in honour and memory of Diogo across all levels.”

That therefore stretches across the women’s and academy sides as well as the men’s first team.

The statement read: "The move is recognition of not only the immeasurable contribution our lad from Portugal made to the Reds' on-pitch successes over the last five years, but also the profound personal impact he had on his team-mates, colleagues and supporters and the everlasting connections he built with them."

Jota signed for the Reds back in 2020, and played 182 times for the Anfield outfit. He scored 65 goals in his time on Merseyside, where he won the Premier League title last term to supplement FA Cup and League Cup triumphs in 2022.

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