Diogo Jota tragically died alongside his brother Andre Silva in a road accident, on July 3. The accident happened days after his marriage to childhood sweetheart Rute Cardoso.
There was an emotional service in his hometown of Gondomar, where club and international teammates were present, including Ruben Dias, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva and Virgil van Dijk.
A glaring absence was Cristiano Ronaldo, who decided to miss the service as he felt that his presence would overshadow proceedings.
Portugal FA chief defends Cristiano Ronaldo
Defending Ronaldo’s decision, Portugal FA chief Pedro Proenca said, “It’s an immense injustice to say that Cristiano, in some way, played a more detached role in this. From the very beginning, the captain was with us and was one of the people who most closely connected with the national team family, with Jota’s own blood family.”
“And I say it again: what they said about our captain is unfair. Cristiano Ronaldo, he was one of the people who felt it the most, especially because he was a true team-mate of Jota. His physical absence means nothing more than that, because he never abandoned this family,” he further added.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s sister Katia defended his decision to not travel for the funeral. She said, “When my father died, in addition to the pain of loss, we had to deal with a flood of cameras and curious onlookers at the cemetery and everywhere we went.”
“And attention was not what it is today in terms of access… At no time were we (the children) able to leave the chapel; it was only possible at the time of the burial, such was the commotion.
“At the funeral, there were presidents, coaches of the national team at the time, such as Luis Filipe Scolari, etc. I don’t remember seeing any of them. And they certainly greeted me. The pain blinded me.
“About pain/family and real support… You will never know what it means until you go through it. If someone sends me a message criticising anything my brother does, I will block it (completely ignore it), that is, they will only do it once.
“It’s getting tiring. The fanaticism. The criticism for nothing, I repeat nothing… Sick society… We all have families.
“It is absurdly shameful to watch TV channels/commentators/social networks emphasising an absence (wise) rather than respectfully honouring the pain of a mutilated family destroyed by the loss of two brothers. I am even ashamed to watch. Regrettable.
“And so the world goes… Society and opinion. Today they are worthless. They themselves have become bottomless pits. I feel sorry… And war is also like that. Believe me. Human evil is also a war. And every day we have to fight against it. And so it goes,” she further added.