Liverpool coach Arne Slot speaks for the first time about the tragic loss of Diogo Jota – and reveals what he told his players.
Arne Slot has spoken publicly for the first time about the tragic loss of Diogo Jota. The FC Liverpool coach gave insights into the inner workings of his team, which was shaken ten days ago by the death of the popular colleague.
“Nothing seems important when we think about what happened. We will always carry him in our hearts, in our thoughts, wherever we go,” Slot said in a moving interview published by the Reds themselves.
Arne Slot speaks about the loss of Diogo Jota
The Dutchman repeated what he had previously told his team: “It is very difficult to find the right words because we are constantly discussing what is appropriate. What is appropriate in our actions? What is appropriate for what we have to say?”
“If we want to cry, then we cry”
Liverpool will play a friendly against Preston North End on Sunday (4 p.m. in the LIVETICKER). A difficult step: “Can we train again? Are we allowed to laugh again? Can we be angry when we have made a wrong decision?” asked Slot.
His advice to the Liverpool players and everyone who mourns Jota: “I told them that perhaps the best thing for us is to deal with this situation like Jota. And by that I meant that Jota was always himself, whether he was talking to me, his teammates or the staff. He was always himself.”
One should take an example from this: “If we want to laugh, then we laugh. If we want to cry, then we cry. If you want to train, you can train, if you don’t want to train, you can’t train. But be yourself, don’t think you have to be different than what your feelings tell you.”
The Dutchman knows that despite the tragic circumstances, he must also focus on the sporting side again: “We are a football club and we have to train and we have to play again, whether we want to or not.”
Slot was finally asked how he would remember Jota: “What comforts me is that he was a champion in everything in the last months of his life. A champion for his family, which is the most important thing because he got married. A champion for his country because he won the Nations League with a country that was so close to his heart because he also carried the flag when we had celebrations. And of course a champion for us because he won the Premier League.”