When it comes, it’s time to leave the earth and claim a space in heaven. That is the fate of all living beings. However, when it’s too early, people are left with the bitter question that never receives an answer. Why? The news that Diogo Jota died in a car crash in Spain only at the age of 28, with his brother Andre at his side, sent ripples all over the sporting world. Every fan, friend, relative, punter and teammate, are now grieving for an unjust demise. There is not a single member of the chain of being an athlete that can say one bad word for him.
What happened?
According to the report released by the authorities, it appears that a tire of the Lamborghini that he was driving blew out while he was overtaking another car at the 65th kilometer of route A-52. This part belongs to Cernadilla city, Zamora province. The driver lost control of the vehicle, which consequently crashed and caught fire. Both passengers were pronounced dead on the scene.
Diogo Jota’s fate is even worse as it had only been 12 days since he got married to Rute Cardosa, with whom they had three children: Denis, Duarte and a yet unnamed daughter. At the time of his wedding, he called himself the luckiest man in the world….
That was his full name. He changed it to Diogo Jota to distinguish himself from a lot of other players with the surname Silva. In fact, Jota is the phonetic spelling of the letter «J» in Portuguese (from his middle name Jose). His first club was Paços de Ferreira where he wore the jersey on 45 occasions and scored 15 goals. After a loan to Porto from Atletico Madrid for a season, he moved to Wolves in the Premier League and from there to Liverpool where he has settled for 5 seasons with 182 appearances and 65 goals.
The major advantages Diogo Jota showed as a player were his versatility, his clinical finishing, his sense of position, his pace and his dribbling. However, none of the above mattered. What did was the complete respect that he had earned from all of his teammates and opponents, not only because of his achievements on the pitch. Mostly because of his personality and his contributions to the local communities.
Car accidents and crashes. A scourge.
Diogo Jota adds his name to a long and distinguished list of athletes that died in similar circumstances. Who can forget Dražen Petrović, Kelvin Kiptum, Emiliano Sala, Diego Montiel, Antonio Reyes and a lot more…. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that another accident will not claim the life of another prominent sports personality like his. We can only wish that it doesn’t. And we can only carry on with his legacy and his memory just like life carries on. We can only stop for a few moments in silent reflection and realization. Then, we push forward. He would have wanted it that way.
