Curtis Jones reacts to Darwin Nunez’s emotional message after Liverpool tribute
Darwin Nunez paid an emotional tribute to Diogo Jota in Liverpool’s first match since his tragic death earlier this month.
The Reds’ celebratory off-season mood was shattered by the devastating news of Jota and his brother Andre Silva’s passing in a car accident in Spain on 3 July, and tributes have come from far and wide.
Liverpool‘s schedule of pre-season matches began just 10 days after Jota’s death with the first of five friendlies against Preston North End at Deepdale, which went ahead on Sunday after some initial doubts.
Gestures from across the world of football are set to continue as Liverpool proceed with matches against AC Milan, Yokohama F Marinos and Athletic Bilbao in pre-season, after Preston’s own tribute to Jota.
Nunez replicates Diogo Jota celebration in Liverpool victory
Liverpools’ first friendly saw the debuts of Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, but all the attention was on how both clubs paid tribute to Jota and Andre Silva.
Wreaths were laid before the match and Jota’s well-known chant rang around Deepdale throughout it, as Conor Bradley and Nunez scored either side of half-time before Cody Gakpo‘s clincher late in the day.
After Liverpool’s 3-1 victory, Nunez posted on Instagram (13 July) with an image of his goal celebration to mirror Jota’s, as well as including a photo of the Portuguese forward doing likewise back in 2022–23.
Numerous Reds players including Kerkez, Gakpo, Luis Diaz, Stefan Bajcetic and Curtis Jones responded with ‘love heart’ emojis, and Nunez’s own message to Jota said: “I know you celebrated with me today like you did that time”.
Liverpool lifted by Jota tributes against Preston
Bradley, Nunez and Gakpo’s goals may have given Arne Slot‘s side a winning start to pre-season, but the tragic deaths of Jota and Andre Silva made Liverpool’s scoring almost inconsequential.
Preston will undoubtedly receive deserved praised for their handling of the tender situation with their first Championship match little over three weeks away, and have set a benchmark for others to follow.
Nunez had been one of the players lined up for a move away from Liverpool in the current transfer window, but after this summer’s tragic events, Slot can’t be blamed if he wants to keep his current group of players together.