By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Premier League top-scorer Mohamed Salah penned a heartfelt tribute to Diogo Jota after Liverpool striker’s death in a car accident on Thursday, July 3.
“I am truly lost for words,” said Salah, who joined Liverpool in the summer of 2017.
“Until yesterday, I never thought there would be something that would frighten me of going back to Liverpool after the break. Team-mates come and go but not like this, Salah posted on Instagram.
“It’s going to be extremely difficult to accept that Diogo won’t be there when we go back.
“My thoughts are with his wife, his children, and of course his parents who suddenly lost their children. Those close to Diogo and his brother Andre need all the support they can get. They will never be forgotten.”
Jota was on his way back to Liverpool for pre-season and, as doctors had advised him against flying because he had undergone minor surgery, he was making the trip by car and ferry.
Doctor Miguel Goncalves, who worked with Jota on his recovery, described him as an “unparalleled professional”.
He told Portuguese sports newspaper Record: “I started working with him last Saturday and I was with him every day until this Wednesday. I said goodbye to him at dinner time.
“He made an extraordinary recovery – he was undoubtedly an unparalleled professional. He strictly followed what I told him, as you could see in the way he was recovering.
“He was excited, confident in his recovery and enthusiastic about the next season.”
He married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, with who he had three children, 11 days before the fatal crash.
Liverpool’s first pre-season match is against Preston on July 13.
The club have opened a book of condolence and lowered flags to half-mast.
Fans have left flowers, scarves and shirts at a makeshift shrine outside Anfield and there are similar scenes at Wolves’ Molineux Stadium, where Jota played previously.
Jota and Silva’s funeral is to take place in Porto on Saturday morning, with tributes continuing to surface about the impact Jota had on the lives of those who knew him, but also on the lives of fans who were given joy by his performances on the pitch, but also his personality off it.