Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk gave a heartfelt interview to Ben Tibbits for British magazine Man About Town, opening up about the pain of losing his close friend and teammate Diogo Jota, who tragically died in a car crash in the summer of 2025. The visibly emotional Dutch centre-back admitted that coming to terms with the loss is incredibly difficult:
It's hard to accept, and it always will be.
Van Dijk emphasised that from the moment they received the devastating news, the entire dressing room came together to support Jota's family:
Our absolute and only focus was and always will be on Rute, his children and the whole Jota family.
He reflected on the challenges of returning to normalcy after such a traumatic experience:
When we had to come back to the club, we couldn't pretend that this horrific thing hadn’t happened. We are a brotherhood.
He acknowledged his responsibility as a leader within the squad:
Obviously, as captain, I will try to take care of these matters and be as involved as possible.
Van Dijk highlighted the importance of preserving Jota's legacy and being sensitive to the feelings of every teammate:
You want to be sure that his spirit and everything he left behind will never be forgotten.
He added:
Everyone deals with grief in their own way. When we communicate, it’s important to open up and learn to listen.
According to the captain of the Reds, the tragedy only strengthened the bond among the players:
Ultimately, we all face this together. This incident has definitely brought us closer.
Furthermore, Van Dijk mentioned the ongoing memorial that honours Jota's name:
We built a magnificent statue for him near Anfield.
