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Anfield marked the day with a special tribute to former player Diogo Jota, as Salah was visibly moved as he joined the fans in paying homage to the late Portuguese midfielder.
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah applauds at full time of the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ian Hodgson)
Liverpool got their Premier League title defence off to a promising start as they began the 2025/25 season of the English top-flight with a 4-2 win over Bournemouth on Saturday.
Anfield marked the day with a special tribute to former player Diogo Jota, as Salah was visibly moved as he joined the fans in paying homage to the late Portuguese midfielder.
ALSO READ| Premier League: Liverpool Beat Bournemouth In Curtain Raiser As Anfield Pays Tribute To Jota
Hugo Ekitike, Cody Gakpo, Federico Chiesa, and Mohamed Salah all scored for the Reds in their season opener at Anfield against Bournemouth.
Antoine Semenyo seemed to have salvaged a point for Bournemouth by scoring twice after reporting an incident of racial abuse from a fan. His goals equalized strikes from Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo for the defending champions.
However, Liverpool’s injury-plagued Italian, Chiesa, put the home side back in front before Salah secured the win.
Jota tragically passed away in a car crash in Spain, which also claimed the life of his brother, Andre Silva. Jota died on July 3, 2025, in Zamora, Spain, at just 28 years old, turning Liverpool’s title joy from the previous season into sorrow.
He married his partner, Rute Cardoso, on June 22, just weeks before his untimely death. The couple had three children together.
Jota began his youth career at Gondomar in 2005 before moving to Paços de Ferreira, where he made his senior debut in 2014. In 2016, he transferred to Atletico Madrid but was immediately loaned to Porto for a season and then to Wolves in 2017. His impressive performances for Wolves led to a permanent move to Molineux.
Jota’s remarkable achievements at Wolves, including helping the team win the EFL Championship title, earned him a transfer to Premier League giants Liverpool in 2020.
With Liverpool, Jota won the Premier League, the FA Cup in the 2021-22 season, and the EFL League Cup. He was also part of the Portuguese team that won the UEFA Nations League in both the 2018/19 and 2024/25 seasons.
Born Diogo Jose Teixeira da Silva, he adopted the surname ‘Jota’ to distinguish himself from teammates with similar names in the youth academy. An avid gamer, Jota formed his own eSports team, Diogo Jota eSports, later renamed Luna Galaxy, and topped the FIFA 21 Championship table in February of that year.
A versatile player capable of playing various roles along the front line, Jota clinched the Premier League title with Liverpool a month ago and followed it up with his second UEFA Nations League title.
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