Liverpool to commemorate Jota at Preston friendly

Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva will be commemorated with a number of tributes at Liverpool’s friendly at Preston North End on Sunday.

Portugal forward Jota and Silva died in a car crash last week in the Spanish province of Zamora.

Liverpool’s match at Deepdale is their first since Jota’s passing, which the club described as an “unimaginable loss”.

There will be a rendition of Liverpool’s anthem You’ll Never Walk Alone, while Preston captain Ben Whiteman will lay a wreath in front of the away fans.

The Lillywhites will pay pre-match tributes and have created a commemorative edition of the matchday programme.

The game, which kicks off at 15:00 BST, will also be broadcast live on ITV and LFCTV.

Jota scored 65 goals in 182 appearances for Liverpool, helping them win the FA Cup and League Cup in 2022 and the Premier League title last season.

He played his final match for Portugal as they beat Spain in the final of the Nations League on 8 June. He scored 14 goals in 49 internationals.

The Guardia Civil told BBC Sport that Jota and his brother died after their car, a Lamborghini, left the road due to a tyre blowout while overtaking another vehicle.

The brothers had been heading to the Spanish port of Santander so Jota could return to Liverpool for pre-season training.