{"id":350537,"date":"2025-08-17T01:55:32","date_gmt":"2025-08-17T01:55:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/350537\/"},"modified":"2025-08-17T01:55:32","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T01:55:32","slug":"diogo-jotas-emotional-widow-takes-in-wolves-incredible-tributes-to-liverpool-star-as-his-ex-team-mates-fight-back-tears-during-minutes-applause","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/350537\/","title":{"rendered":"Diogo Jota&#8217;s emotional widow takes in Wolves&#8217; incredible tributes to Liverpool star as his ex team-mates fight back tears during minute&#8217;s applause"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/wolverhampton-wanderers\/index.html\" id=\"mol-d3687da0-75bb-11f0-8a5b-9bd239d2d105\" class=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">Wolves<\/a> paid a moving tribute to former player <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/diogo-jota\/index.html\" id=\"mol-d36c2720-75bb-11f0-8a5b-9bd239d2d105\" class=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">Diogo Jota<\/a>\u00a0ahead of their clash with <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/manchester-city\/index.html\" id=\"mol-323a1d90-7ac9-11f0-b1e8-af90e6ffb212\" class=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">Manchester City<\/a>\u00a0on Saturday afternoon.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Fans at Molineux erected a huge banner in tribute to the late forward as his widow Rute Cardoso and family watched on from the stands.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Jota and his brother Andre Silva passed away in a car crash in Spain on July 3, leaving his Liverpool team-mates and the football community mourning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">And Wolves were determined to do him justice as they hosted their first <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/premierleague\/index.html\" id=\"mol-7b0d62f0-7acb-11f0-bfc2-cf79e24be4e4\" rel=\"noopener\">Premier League<\/a> game since the tragedy,\u00a0observing a minute\u2019s silence and featuring Jota on the front of the match programme.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Jota spent three seasons with the club between 2017 and 2020, helping them win promotion to the Premier League and qualify for Europe, and supporters showed their love with an enormous tifo.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">A banner below the tifo read: &#8216;We&#8217;ll remember you when you walk in fields of gold&#8217;, in reference to Jota&#8217;s\u00a0favourite song, Fields of Gold by Sting.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-c2611590400c8152\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101284567-0-image-a-2_1755364495850.jpg\" height=\"422\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Diogo Jota's widow, Rute Cardoso, cut an emotional figure as she stood with his family while Wolves paid their tribute to her late husband\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Diogo Jota&#8217;s widow, Rute Cardoso, cut an emotional figure as she stood with his family while Wolves paid their tribute to her late husband\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-d3dc1a6ff03b66a4\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285593-15006845-image-a-33_1755367890968.jpg\" height=\"428\" width=\"634\" alt=\"\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>  <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Isabel Silva and Joaquim Silva, the parents of Jota, were visibly emotional on Saturday\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-99d0bd4dd417cfb4\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101284477-0-image-a-1_1755364490297.jpg\" height=\"401\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Wolves paid an emotional tribute to former player Jota with a special tifo at Molineux\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Wolves paid an emotional tribute to former player Jota with a special tifo at Molineux\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Cardoso, who Jota married 11 days before his tragic death, was visibly emotional in the stands as she took in proceedings alongside his parents and his former Portugal team-mate Ruben Neves.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Goalkeeper also Jose Sa appeared to fight back tears as both sets of players lined up on the centre circle for a minute\u2019s applause.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">In the 18th minute, fans at Molineux applauded in tribute to the shirt number he wore during his time at the club.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Jota joined Wolves on loan from <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/atletico-madrid\/index.html\" id=\"mol-4f1c12a0-59c3-11f0-bd44-e7ea7df5c581\" rel=\"noopener\">Atletico Madrid<\/a> in 2017 and helped them win the Championship title before spending another two full seasons with them permanently.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">All in all, he scored 44 goals in 131 games for Wolves as they got promoted, then finished seventh twice and reached the quarter-finals of the <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/europa-league\/index.html\" id=\"mol-4f2c3f40-59c3-11f0-bd44-e7ea7df5c581\" rel=\"noopener\">Europa League<\/a> in 2019-20.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">He became a modern hero for the Midlands side, breaking numerous records before his \u00a341million move to <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/liverpool\/index.html\" id=\"mol-4f1e83a0-59c3-11f0-bd44-e7ea7df5c581\" class=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">Liverpool<\/a>\u00a0in 2020, where he went on to win the Premier League.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Jota scored back-to-back hat-tricks against Besiktas and Espanyol at Molineux in the Europa League, becoming the club&#8217;s first player to do that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">That three-goal salvo against Besiktas came in 11 minutes, the club&#8217;s quickest-ever European hat-trick.<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-298137cd3002f84f\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285423-15006845-image-a-28_1755367727394.jpg\" height=\"412\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Players fought back the tears as they clapped in tribute to the former Liverpool star\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Players fought back the tears as they clapped in tribute to the former Liverpool star\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-e6b806176b7f7ee1\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285417-15006845-image-a-30_1755367787314.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Rute Cardoso had married Jota just 11 days before he and his brother died in a car crash\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Rute Cardoso had married Jota just 11 days before he and his brother died in a car crash<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-b02046d0420397da\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101077639-0-image-a-25_1754808087959.jpg\" height=\"389\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Jota initially joined Wolves on loan in 2017 before signing permanently the following year\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Jota initially joined Wolves on loan in 2017 before signing permanently the following year<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-17c8f4cc1b72fdef\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285413-15006845-image-a-31_1755367804594.jpg\" height=\"951\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Fans held up banners in dedication to the Portuguese, with one reading: 'Good as gold'\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Fans held up banners in dedication to the Portuguese, with one reading: &#8216;Good as gold&#8217;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-e84d1b77aa864d97\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285353-15006845-image-a-9_1755366648033.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Wolves also dedicated the match programme to Jota, who scored 44 goals in 131 matches\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Wolves also dedicated the match programme to Jota, who scored 44 goals in 131 matches\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-4d0a603f4f6f7eeb\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285427-15006845-image-a-36_1755368259313.jpg\" height=\"443\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Cardoso watches on as a tribtue is paid to her late husband before Wolves faced Man City\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Cardoso watches on as a tribtue is paid to her late husband before Wolves faced Man City<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">It was testament to his determination to play in England that Jota swapped Champions League football with Atletico for the Championship.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The Portuguese scored 18 goals in his first season with the club, being named their top scorer and establishing himself as a much-loved star.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Jota has been inducted into Wolves&#8217; hall of fame, with some of the floral tributes to him due to be displayed at the Wolves Museum in a permanent tribute.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Across the Premier League this weekend, stadiums are holding a minute of silence and players are wearing black armbands to remember him.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">On Friday night, Liverpool paid their own tribute to Jota with a special mosaic held up by fans at Anfield as they beat Bournemouth 4-2. They also dedicated their match programme to him.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Images of Jota and Silva were displayed on the stadium screens, while the &#8216;Forever 20&#8217; emblem adorned the shirts of Liverpool players.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Mohamed Salah scored late on as Liverpool won 4-2, with the winger mimicking Jota&#8217;s &#8216;crocodile&#8217; celebration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Salah broke down in tears at full time on an emotional night at Anfield.<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-f6a7c9a189ac1dd8\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285421-15006845-image-a-32_1755367826737.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Their tifo paid a nod to his favourite song,\u00a0Fields of Gold by Sting, with words reading: 'We'll remember you when you walk in fields of gold'\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Their tifo paid a nod to his favourite song,\u00a0Fields of Gold by Sting, with words reading: &#8216;We&#8217;ll remember you when you walk in fields of gold&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-32d5d289a9a9bc6e\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285441-15006845-image-a-34_1755368194657.jpg\" height=\"411\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Fans visit a mural devoted to Jota on a road near Molineux ahead of their clash with Man City\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Fans visit a mural devoted to Jota on a road near Molineux ahead of their clash with Man City<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-f8af7752db7ec44c\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/101285431-15006845-image-a-35_1755368230804.jpg\" height=\"424\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Jota's favourite song was 'Fields of Gold' by Sting and fans paid a nod to that\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Jota&#8217;s favourite song was &#8216;Fields of Gold&#8217; by Sting and fans paid a nod to that\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Liverpool boss Arne Slot dedicated the victory to Jota as he said: &#8216;I think Mo felt how special that was. He probably felt the emotions. Diogo&#8217;s wife is here, his family is here, his children are here.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;We also feel the emotions, the grief they still have. Those emotions probably led to Mo being emotional. I felt the same without being in tears.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;After the fans sung so many times for him, it&#8217;s nice he gave them something in return. That&#8217;s what he did today. Unbelievable atmosphere in the last few minutes.&#8217;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wolves paid a moving tribute to former player Diogo Jota\u00a0ahead of their clash with Manchester City\u00a0on Saturday afternoon.\u00a0&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":350538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8815],"tags":[748,92,18517,393,94,4884,179,93,16,15,1928],"class_list":{"0":"post-350537","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-liverpool","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-dailymail","10":"tag-diogo-jota","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-great-britain","14":"tag-liverpool","15":"tag-sport","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom","18":"tag-wolverhampton-wanderers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115041621013170179","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=350537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/350538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=350537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=350537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=350537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}