Liverpool star Mohamed Salah is set to cut his holiday short and return to Liverpool early following the tragic death of team-mate Diogo Jota, according to a report.
The football world has been launched into mourning after the Liverpool star died on Thursday alongside his brother when his Lamborghini had a tyre blow out while overtaking another vehicle on the A-52 at Cernadilla near Zamora – just ten miles over the border from Portugal.
The car is said to have rolled and burst into flames, with emergency services unable to save the footballing duo. Jota’s brother, Andre Silva, 26, played for Portuguese second division side Penafiel.
Jota and Silva were headed to Santander to catch a ferry to Britain after Diogo was advised not to fly following lung surgery, it was reported in his home country.
Liverpool are due to start pre-season training on Tuesday, so Jota was heading back to the UK on a road trip with his brother less than two weeks after he married his childhood sweetheart Rute in his home city of Porto on June 22.
Now, according to Egyptian publication Yallakora, Salah is said to be set to return to England on Friday after the news of Jota’s death.
Liverpool star Mohamed Salah is set to cut his holiday short after the death of Diogo Jota
Salah has been enjoying some downtime in the off-season after winning the Premier League
Jota passed away in a car crash on Thursday just days after he married childhood sweetheart Rute
Salah and Jota played together 150 times for Liverpool, combining for 19 goals in total in terms of one assisting the other.
The Egyptian is the player who Jota played alongside the second-most in his career – the first being Ruben Neves.
Salah has been enjoying a summer break after winning the Premier League and Golden Boot last season with Liverpool in a year that saw him score 34 goals in all competitions.
According to Turkiye Today, he has been relaxing in Bodrum, Turkey, while he was also seen on holiday in Mombasa, Kenya, and in Mykonos, Greece. He has shared a number of photos from his break on social media.
Meanwhile, doctors had reportedly advised Jota not to catch a plane after a recent operation, so he was getting a boat back to England instead. A Brittany Ferries service from Santander to Plymouth left at 4pm BST on Thursday, arriving in Devon at 11.15am on Friday.
According to Record, Jota and new wife Rute attended a friend’s wedding over the weekend and had been celebrating together.
The lamborghini crash happened on the A-52 in the province of Zamora. The Spanish dual carriageway is a key route taken by drivers after leaving northern Portugal as they head for the ports of Santander and Bilbao or drive north-east towards France.
Emergency services in the Castilla and Leon region confirmed the crash and two fatalities at around 12.35am on Thursday. Diogo and Andre’s deaths were then confirmed by the Portuguese Football Federation at around 8am.
Salah and Jota played alongside each other 150 times – the second-most of any player for Jota
They had just been part of the squad that delivered Liverpool’s second Premier League title
Salah has been in the likes of Turkey and is due to return to pre-season training next week
Wreckage at the scene suggested the brothers were driving to the UK in a Lamborghini Huracan Evo Spyder.
Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz are among the current Liverpool players to have paid tribute – as well as former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
Klopp reacted to the tragic news on Instagram, paying tribute to a ‘great friend’ and ‘fantastic player’.
‘This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose! But I can’t see it,’ Klopp wrote.
‘I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother Andre.
‘Diogo was a not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father! We will miss you so much!
‘All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them!
‘Rest in peace – Love J’
