The highly anticipated new Premier League season kicked off at Anfield on Friday, with some supporters still wiping away tears from their eyes on a bright, sunny day. The emotions were on full display ahead of the opener between Liverpool and Bournemouth as fans paid tribute to late Reds star Diogo Jota, who tragically passed away along with his brother André Silva in a car crash earlier this summer.
Banners, signs, balloons and scarves emblazoned with Jota’s name, face, and No. 20 kit number were raised above heads by those in attendance when the collective sang out Liverpool’s beloved anthem, “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
Broadcast of the match showed some fans teary-eyed while singing the traditional song. The club’s star player, Mohamed Salah, looked upward while the anthem rang out through the ground.
The public address announcer called for a period of silence in memory of “our forever 20” and his brother, who died on July 3. Liverpool players stood side-by-side with their arms draped over one another’s shoulders as fans displayed a collective mosaic sign in the stands that spelled out “DJ 20” and “AS 30,” shown in green, red and white colors – the colorway of the brothers’ native Portugal flag.
A black-and-white picture of the brothers was shown on video boards as some players bowed their heads during the moment.
The match got underway with the crowd full of enthusiasm. In the 20th minute, in reflection of Jota’s number, fans around the ground stood, clapped in unison and chanted in honor of their much-loved forward.
Players and coaches on both clubs were wearing black armbands.
Liverpool fans also honored Jota at the annual Community Shield match last weekend.
Title defenders begin the quest to repeat
As for the match itself, the reigning Premier League champions are looking the part despite a dramatically changed roster.
Liverpool are favored to repeat as title-winners after bolstering the squad with multiple high-profile signings, including a trio from the Bundesliga: Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong from Bayern Leverkusen and Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt. New defender Milos Kerkez started as well and faced his former side on Friday.
Ekitike will forever remember this day after he scored on his Anfield debut. In the 37th minute, the new striker powered through the Bournemouth backline to slot home, giving the home side a 1-0 lead. The Frenchman held his fingers to form the No. 20 – Jota’s former number.
The Arne Slot-led club won the title in his first season in charge last year and will be looking to guide the Reds to their first repeat crown in over forty years.
This is a developing story and will be updated.