Ruben Neves reveals Diogo Jota tattoo as Portugal prepare to pay tribute to ex-team-mate

On Saturday, Portugal will play their first international fixture since the death Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, who died in a car crash alongside his brother in July

Ruben Neves has revealed a tattoo of him and close friend Diogo Jota following the Liverpool star’s tragic death. Jota, 28, tragically died on July 3 after he and his younger brother, Andre Silva, were killed in a single-car collision in northwest Spain on the way to boarding a ferry.

Neves and Jota were team-mates at Portuguese giants Porto for a season before joining Wolves a mere 17 days apart in July 2017. The pair helped Wolves win promotion to the Premier League in their first campaign at Molineux and they spent a further two years together before Jota’s £41million transfer to Liverpool.

Born just four months apart, the two also played in Portugal’s youth teams together, meaning that they shared the pitch on the same side a total of 164 times for club and country. Neves, who now plays for Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal, was left devastated by Jota’s death and helped his coffin at the funeral in Gondomar.

This week, the midfielder was spotted in training with a new tattoo in memory of Jota. The artwork shows Neves hugging his beloved ex-team-mate, seemingly after Portugal beat Spain to win the Nations League final in June.

Neves also took part in an emotional tribute to Jota this week, as Portugal prepare to play their first match since his death. A ceremony celebrating Jota’s life was held at their training base in Lisbon on Tuesday.

READ MORE: Mo Salah reflects on breaking down over Diogo Jota’s death – ‘I didn’t prepare myself’READ MORE: James Milner explains Diogo Jota gesture after Sky Sports commentators’ mistake

Jota’s wife, Rute, was present to unveil a framed bronze Portugal shirt with his name and number on. She was also awarded with a special medal alongside Jota’s parents.

Portugal’s squad, including captain Cristiano Ronaldo, attended the ceremony wearing black suits. Neves gave a poignant speech which was made into a video by Portugal’s social media department, showing the 28-year-old reading a handwritten letter to Jota.

«Everyone in the national team felt these words to the same extent and speaking as a group, I think they fit extremely well with what our first meeting will be like,» Neves began.

«More than friends, we’re family. And that won’t change just because you’ve signed a contract a little farther from home. When we join the national team, you’ll still be with us – at the dinner table, on the bus, on the plane.

«Always by our side, just like you’ve always been. We’ll keep laughing, making plans and sharing life the way we always have.

«We’ll make sure you’re never missing from our lives and that your loved ones have everything they need while you’re away, thinking of us, waiting for us. Life brought us together and nothing can break that bond.

«We’ve already achieved so much together, and there’s still so much more ahead and we know we’ll make it. From today on, you’ll step on to the pitch with us and we’ll keep moving forward together on the stage where it all began.»

Neves will inherit Jota’s No.21 shirt for Portugal, who travel to Andorra on Saturday before a trip to Hungary next Tuesday. «The No.21 jersey will go to Ruben Neves because, that way, that number will remain on the field and with all of us,» manager Roberto Martinez confirmed ahead of their World Cup qualifying double-header.

«He had a very close relationship with Diogo and is the ideal person to represent him.»

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