View 2 ImagesRute Cardoso watched on from the stands as her children were mascots(Image: Getty Images)
Rute Cardoso has expressed her gratitude to supporters for their compassion during an “incredibly difficult time” in a heartfelt Instagram message. The wife of Diogo Jotaattended Anfield with their children for Saturday afternoon’s match against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Their sons Dinis and Duarte were mascots for the day during a moving afternoon at Anfield. Before kick-off, the kids walked onto the pitch alongside Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa in a touching moment, as the two Premier Leagueclubs represented by Jota played for the first time since his death.
His widow, Rute – whom he wed a fortnight before the fatal car crash – observed from the stands. The crowd delivered a profoundly emotional rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” in response.
Van Dijk then led Dinis and Duarte towards the Kop and shared a kickabout with them as supporters applauded. Earlier, Wolves fans had assembled at the Jota memorial outside Anfield, with numerous tributes left in his honour.
Liverpool won 2-1 with goals from Ryan Gravenberch and Florian Wirtz. Gravenberch marked his goal by performing Jota’s iconic baby shark celebration.
The club shared a poignant video of Jota’s children performing their mascot duties, which included footage of Van Dijk embracing Rute before the match. In the aftermath of the game, Jota’s widow shared heartfelt images of their children on Instagram.
She said: “From the bottom of my heart, thank you to the club and to all the fans for the love, respect and support shown during this incredibly difficult time. Your messages and gestures have meant more than words can express.”
The Reds skipper described it as “an honour” to lead Jota’s sons onto the pitch before kick-off. In comments to the club’s official website, he explained: “It was an absolute honour to have the boys with me and Ali [Becker] as well together.
“I think it was something I was really looking forward to. Obviously, after discussions with Rute and the family, it was really something I looked forward to.
“It was going to be emotional, but I think it’s something that the boys will remember forever. Hopefully, there’s more to come in the future for them, and they can keep enjoying Liverpool because Liverpool is the place that’s very big to their hearts, and Diogo will always stay with us forever. I was very proud to have them with us, and the fans, I think, appreciated that as well.”
Anfield faithful continue to pay tribute to Jota through a poignant ritual – singing his name during the 20th minute of each fixture, honouring his squad number, which has been permanently retired by the club in the player’s memory. Supporters flooded the comments section of her Instagram post with heartfelt tributes to the family.
One wrote: “It was lovely to see you all at Anfield today, I hope we’ve made you proud. Diogo was definitely smiling from up there watching his sons running at Anfield.”
Another added: “I hope you know that we love you so much and that you will never walk alone.” And a third posted: “God bless you and your family. We will always love him. YNWA”.