![\"EDITORIAL](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_257708312-365f.jpg\")
\n\t\tDiogo Jota died in a car crash, along with his brother Andre, aged just 28(Credits: Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tDiogo Jota died in a car crash, along with his brother Andre, aged just 28(Credits: Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
Diogo Jota<\/a>\u2019s physio has opened up on the agonising decisions the Liverpool<\/a> star made that ultimately led to his tragic death.<\/p>\n The Premier League<\/a> champions and the world of football in large were in a state of shock and mourning on Thursday when it was confirmed that the 28-year-old and his younger brother, Andre Silva, had been killed<\/a> in a car crash.<\/p>\n Jota had been driving across northern Spain<\/a> with his sibling on a journey to board a ferry back to England, having been warned against flying due to the condition he had been suffering with.<\/p>\n Follow Metro\u2019s live blog for full coverage of Diogo Jota\u2019s death<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Respiratory physiotherapist Miguel Goncalves had been working with the former Wolves player just a matter of hours before the fatal incident took place. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\tGet personalised updates on Liverpool every day\t\t\t<\/p>\n Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro\u2019s Football Newsletter. <\/p>\n Sign up to our newsletter<\/a> and then select your team in the link we\u2019ll send you so we can get football news tailored to you.<\/p>\n Jota finished last season playing through the pain barrier with a condition called pneumothorax which required surgery.<\/p>\n He was still able to take part in Portugal\u2019s victorious Nations League campaign before he underwent the knife.<\/p>\n \t\t \t\t Despite the seriousness and potential complications of his condition, Jota had every intention of making a swift return to full fitness and was described as the \u2018ultimate professional\u2019 by Goncalves.<\/p>\n \u2018I said goodbye to him and his brother, Andre, at around 8:30 p.m. His brother was a great companion and decided to go with him, to accompany him on the trip, and that way they would also spend more time together,\u2019\u00a0Goncalves, who works at Hospital S\u00e3o Jo\u00e3o, in Porto, told Portuguese outlet\u00a0Record<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2018They were going to travel at night because it was cooler, but they weren\u2019t going direct.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018He told me that the journey would take about eight hours, but that they would stop at a hotel in the Burgos area to rest. Diogo was very aware of his professionalism. They were only supposed to arrive in Santander today, catch the boat and then go to England.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018The family would arrive later by plane, organize their lives over the weekend and then, on Monday, they had a medical appointment scheduled in Liverpool to assess the situation.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019ve read some things on the internet that are regrettable, and I\u2019ve even heard some in the media. To be clear, Diogo and Andre weren\u2019t partying at all, they weren\u2019t in the so-called \u201cgood mood\u201d life, they had nothing that deserved any repair. Nothing.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n Liverpool\u2019s first team squad had been due to return to training next week with their first pre-season game, scheduled to take place against Preston, due to be played next week.<\/p>\n \t\t \t\t Goncalves continued: \u2018I started working with him last Saturday and I was with him every day until this Wednesday. I said goodbye to him at dinner time.<\/p>\n \u2018He made an extraordinary recovery, he was undoubtedly an unparalleled professional. He strictly followed what I told him, as you could see in the way he was recovering.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018The base of his right lung had collapsed a little, but with the post-surgery physiotherapy he was practically flawless. When I left him yesterday he was no longer in pain and was going to return to Liverpool.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018He was excited, confident in his recovery and enthusiastic about the next season. He told me that he would not go on the pre-season tour that Liverpool is going to Japan to strengthen his recovery, he believed he was going to have a great season.\u2019<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow![\"Police](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_257735526-258e.jpg\")
\n\t\tCaption: Police officers work at the scene of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva\u2019s fatal car crash (Credits: via REUTERS)<\/p>\n![\"Diogo](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_257722211-45fd.jpg\")
\n\t\tDiogo Jota had been driving through Zamora in northern Spain (Credits: Created with Datawrapper)<\/p>\n![\"epa12214130](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_257779114-def8.jpg\")
\n\t\tLiverpool fans have been laying tributes and paying respects outside Anfield (Credits: EPA)<\/p>\n![\"TOPSHOT-FBL-WOMEN-EURO-2025-MATCH3-ESP-POR-TRIBUTE-JOTA\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2222691400.jpg\")
\n\t\tPortugal\u2019s women\u2019s team paid tribute to Diogo Jota during their first game at the Euros (Picture: Getty)<\/p>\n
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