Diogo Jota's true character was clear as 'risk' proved fruitful before Liverpool move

The football community is still mourning the tragic loss of former Liverpool striker Diogo Jota, who died in a car accident along with his footballer brother Andre Silva, 26, on Thursday, July 3. Jota, who was 28 at the time of his passing, had once admitted to taking a "risk" by signing for Wolves back in 2017 when they were in the Championship. Jota's bold move to join Wolves turned out to be a masterstroke as he rose to prominence at Molineux and played a pivotal role in their ascent to the Premier League.

His decision to leave behind the allure of Champions League football for the grind of the Championship highlighted his exceptional humility and ambition. Before his stint at Wolves, Jota started his professional journey at Pacos de Ferreira and moved to Atletico Madrid in 2016. However, he didn't stay long at Atletico, as he was loaned to Porto, where he began to shine under then-manager Nuno Espirito Santo.

When Nuno took the helm at Wolves, he was so taken with Jota's potential that he brought both him and team-mate Ruben Neves to the Midlands club on loan. In September 2018, Jota reflected on his willingness to "step down" to the Championship side to realign his career trajectory.

He believed in taking risks to fulfil one's dreams, a philosophy that led him to sign permanently with Wolves after a year on loan. "We had to take the risk to come here," Jota told The Guardian.

"Sometimes when you want to achieve something, you have to take a risk. And at that time, it was the best thing to do. We came here, we saw the project of the club, we saw the players they bought, so we put our minds in the Championship, focused on [getting to] the Premier League and did our work.

"In the beginning, a lot of people criticised us, including in Portugal. They said: 'You are a great player, and you go there now?' But now I think everyone understands we were right. We want to play football ... in the best league in the world, so the city doesn't matter."

Such was the calibre of Jota's performances for Wolves, netting 44 goals in 131 games, that Liverpool couldn't ignore his talent, prompting Jurgen Klopp to snap him up in a £45million deal in September 2020.

Former team-mate Neves was present in Gondomar at the funeral of Jota and Andre Silva on Saturday. Following his Club World Cup performance for Al Hilal in America, the 28-year-old flew immediately to Portugal for the occasion.

Acting as a pallbearer, Neves helped lay to rest both Jota and Andre during an intimate service in their hometown. Amidst a sea of touching eulogies worldwide, Neves' tribute stood out for its raw emotion and sincerity.

In a heartfelt social media post, he said: "Bro, wherever you are, I know you'll read this, we've never been this sloppy and maybe now I regret it a little, but you know what you mean to me as much as I know what I mean to you.

"More than a friendship, we're family, and we won't stop being that just because you've decided to sign a contract a little further away from us. When I go to the national team, you will continue to be by my side at the dinner table, on the bus, on the plane... you will always be there with me, as usual.

"Let's keep laughing, making plans, sharing our life with each other. I'm going to make sure you're always present and I'll make sure that your loved ones never lack anything while you're there, far away but thinking of us, waiting for us.

"Life has brought us together and now it can't tear us apart. We've achieved some great things together, we still have a lot to go, I know we can. From today on, you will enter the field with me and we will follow our path together, on the stage where we met. Diogoal, you are my favourite lemonade! Amo-te."