Joao Cancelo and Ruben Neves mourn the death of Diogo Jota during a minute of silence (VIDEO)

The minute of silence before the match between Al Hilal and Fluminense in the Club World Cup became a moment of deep sorrow. Joao Cancelo and Rubén Neves, visibly moved, could not hold back their tears as they remembered their former national teammate, Diogo Jota, who died on Thursday along with his brother in a car accident in Spain.

The tribute, held at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, was attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and was part of an official homage promoted by world football's governing body.

FIFA ordered a minute's silence to be observed during all quarter-final matches for the death of the Portuguese footballer.

Cancelo and Neves recently shared the UEFA Nations League title with Jota. The news of the accident, which occurred in the Spanish province of Zamora, deeply shook the Portuguese and international football world.

Farewell in Gondomar: the entire town accompanied the family

While the international tournament was being played in the United States, Portugal was saying goodbye. Hundreds of people gathered this Friday under the strong sun at the Mother Church of Gondomar, in the north of the country, to pay tribute to Diogo Jota and his brother André. Both had grown up in this town, very close to Porto.

The wake, set up in the Chapel of the Resurrection, received from early on wreaths, Porto shirts and displays of affection from fans, neighbors and celebrities. Present were figures such as the President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa; Prime Minister Luis Montenegro; the president of Porto, Andre Villas-Boas; and national teammates such as Bernardo Silva and Diogo Dalot.

Pedro Proenca, president of the Portuguese Football Federation, declared: “Portuguese football is in mourning. Diogo Jota was a figure far above Portugalidad.” A visibly moved Villas-Boas added that Jota was “a silent hero,an example on and off the pitch.”

A beloved and respected footballer

Diogo Jota, 28, trained in Gondomar and Paços de Ferreira before joining Atlético de Madrid in 2016. He was then loaned to Porto and made the leap to England, where he shone for Wolverhampton and, since 2020, for Liverpool. He had married his longtime partner, Rute Cardoso, less than a month before, with whom he had three young children.

His brother, Andre Silva, 25, was also a professional footballer and played for Penafiel in the Portuguese second division. Both lost their lives in an accident on the A52 in Cernadilla, Spain.

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