Ruben Neves has revealed that he continues to send messages to Diogo Jota in a WhatsApp group, nearly a year after the Liverpool star's tragic death. Jota died aged 28 on July 3, 2025, when his Lamborghini crashed in Zamora, Spain, also killing his brother Andre Silva.
Neves Opens Up About Grief
Speaking on SIC's Alta Definicao, the 29-year-old midfielder said: "I still talk to him. Few people know this. We have a WhatsApp group with Rute (Jota's widow) and Diogo, and it's still there, and we continue to talk there. Whenever something special happens, I have the conversations archived on my WhatsApp so I can continue to send him messages."
Neves described the day after learning of Jota's death as "the most difficult day" of his life. The pair were teammates at Porto and Wolves between 2016 and 2020, as well as for Portugal.
Jota's Wedding Speech Shared by Widow
Jota's widow, Rute Cardoso, marked their wedding anniversary on June 22 by sharing his wedding speech on Instagram. The couple married just over a week before his death, after a decade-long relationship and three children. In the speech, Jota said: "Where the future takes us, maybe there's someone here who knows better than I do. But the truth is, I don't know and it doesn't really matter to me as long as I'm with you. I love you forever, my 'Branquinha.'"
Portugal Honors Jota at World Cup
Portugal is honoring Jota at the 2026 World Cup in North America with commemorative wristbands featuring his name alongside the 26-man squad. The wristbands were presented by Prime Minister Luis Montenegro. PSG midfielder Vitinha explained: "He offered us this wristband. They made sure it was a wristband we could wear on the pitch. It has all the specifics for us to enter the pitch with it, with the name of all the players plus the special name of Diogo Jota."
Portugal beat Uzbekistan 5-0 and face Colombia in their final Group K match as they aim for the knockout stages.
