Saturday's Premier League fixture between Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers won't be a normal game. It can't be. Diogo Jota's two sons, Dinis and Duarte, will walk onto the Anfield pitch as matchday mascots — the first time his former clubs have met since he died in a car crash this summer.
This is the stuff that breaks through the noise. No tactical analysis needed. Just two kids walking where their dad used to play.
What happened to Diogo Jota
On July 3rd, 2025, Jota and his younger brother Andre Silva were killed in a car accident in the Spanish province of Zamora. The Portugal international was driving back to Liverpool for pre-season. He was 28. Eleven days earlier, he'd married his partner Rute Cardoso in Porto.
Liverpool's response was immediate and definitive: the number 20 jersey was retired across all levels of the club. His contract was paid out in full to his family. No PR spin, no corporate half-measures. They did the right thing without being asked.
Why this fixture matters
Jota spent three years at Wolves before Liverpool paid £41 million for him in September 2020. He scored 44 goals for the Old Gold, then 65 more at Anfield. Both fanbases genuinely loved him — not because of some manufactured "brand loyalty" but because he played with obvious joy and never mailed it in.
When his family attended Liverpool's season opener against Bournemouth in August, the Kop unfurled a massive tifo with his image. The message referenced his favorite song: "We'll remember you when you walk in fields of gold." Wolves fans did the same at Molineux for their opener against Manchester City.
Now his sons get to be part of Saturday's game. Not as spectators hidden in a suite somewhere. On the pitch. Leading out both teams.
Arne Slot gets it
In his program notes, Liverpool's manager wrote something worth quoting:
"It is not my place to tell them where they should look for comfort — if that is even possible — but I can only hope that the feeling of love and affection that Diogo still generates brings them some solace."
That's not coach-speak. That's a human being acknowledging he doesn't have answers but hoping something good comes from something terrible.
The tributes keep coming
James Milner, now at Brighton, wore Jota's number 20 when he returned to Anfield earlier this month. The Liverpool crowd gave him a standing ovation — for the number, not just the player. Jordan Henderson dedicated a goal to Jota on what would've been his birthday.
These aren't orchestrated media moments. They're players who actually knew him, processing grief the only way athletes know how: through the game.
Beyond the result
Liverpool sits fifth in the table after a summer of heavy spending that hasn't quite clicked yet. Wolves are dead last and staring at a historically bad season. None of that will matter when two little boys walk out at 3:00 PM GMT.
Some things are bigger than three points. This is one of them.
