Liverpool and Preston fans joined to pay tribute to the late Diogo Jota ahead of their friendly, including an emotional rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone.
A week-and-a-half on from the death of their No. 20, Liverpool headed to Deepdale for their opening friendly of pre-season.
Such was the significance of the occasion that Liverpool and Preston organised a number of tributes to Jota and brother Andre Silva before kickoff.
That included singer Claudia Rose Maguire performing renditions of the two clubs’ anthems, first Can’t Help Falling in Love and the You’ll Never Walk Alone, with supporters joining in emotional scenes for the latter.
Fans were left in tears in the stands as a wreath was laid in front of the Bill Shankly Kop and the players paused for a minute’s silence.
As the game got underway the travelling supporters worked their way through the Liverpool songbook, with Jota’s song bellowed out in the 20th minute and lasting for a number of minutes.
“Ohhh, he wears the number 20,He will take us to victory,And when he’s running down the left wing,He’ll cut inside and score for LFC,He’s a lad from Portugal,Better than Figo don’t you know,Ohhh, his name is Diogo!”
A number of supporters wore ‘Diogo J. 20’ shirts and held up homemade signs in tribute to Jota, who had been preparing to head into his sixth season at Liverpool.
On the pitch, Federico Chiesa took up duties as centre-forward, flanked by Mohamed Salah and youngster Rio Ngumoha.
It will take some getting used to with a Liverpool squad lacking their No. 20, with the club taking the decision to retire the shirt in his honour.
Preston’s efforts to accommodate tributes to Jota and Andre Silva will not go forgotten, with a bond growing between the two clubs reminiscent of that built with Celtic after the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.
The Championship club produced a special edition of their matchday programme which they handed out free to all supporters in attendance.
While it was always going to be a heartbreaking afternoon for all involved it is a testament to Preston’s respect for Liverpool and their late striker that they went above and beyond to honour the life of Diogo Jota.
