Artist Emma Rodgers with her memorial to Diogo Jota which was unveiled outside Anfield stadium today(Image: Liverpool Echo)

The touching two-word inspiration behind Liverpool's new Diogo Jota memorial

by · Liverpool Echo

The memorial to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, designed by Wirral artist Emma Rodgers, was unveiled at Anfield on Thursday

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Liverpool Football Club has unveiled a permanent memorial to Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva at Anfield, a year after the brothers' tragic deaths. The Reds forward and his brother were killed in a car crash last July as Jota was travelling back to Merseyside for the start of pre-season training, just days after marrying his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, Anfield became a place of remembrance, with thousands of scarves, flowers and personal tributes left by grieving supporters. Last season, Liverpool permanently retired Jota's iconic No. 20 shirt across all levels of the club

The new sculpture, titled Forever 20, has now been installed outside Anfield Stadium. The memorial was created by Wirral-based sculptor Emma Rodgers, whose previous works include the Cilla Black statue outside the Cavern Club and the world's largest Liver Bird.

Emma spent nine months designing and crafting the permanent tribute, weaving personal touches throughout the artwork, from supporters' scarves and shirts left at Jota's memorial to references to his trademark goal celebration.

Emma said everything began with two themes that kept returning at the beginning of the design process.

She told the ECHO: "The words 'brother' and 'always' kept coming up. Jota was a brother to Andre, but that's how his teammates described him as well. For 'always', I thought, how can I translate that [into art]? That's where the idea of infinity comes from. There are two infinity lines that are interlinked. It's like a Mobius strip, it's never-ending."

Those intertwined forms became the foundation of the sculpture, before Emma layered in more tributes celebrating Jota's life on and off the pitch. His trademark heart celebration inspired the central heart shape, while the numbers 20 and 30 - representing Diogo and his brother André - are folded into the flowing forms.

There's also a hidden message woven into the design. Seen from the right angle, the sculpture's twisting forms and integrated numbers combine to spell out "LOVE", a detail deliberately designed to be discovered as people walk around it.

Emma incorporated physical pieces of the tributes left by supporters in the days after Jota's death, so the fans themselves became part of the artwork. His song has been hand-carved across the surface, appearing and disappearing as it wraps around the sculpture, while the colours - red, green and gold - reference both Portugal and the clubs he represented.

Emma added: "It's a celebration of his life; he was such a young, vibrant person. I hope the fans can take some comfort in it."

ECHO photographer Iain Watts was there to capture the sculpture as it was unveiled for the first time. Take a look at the photos below.

  1. A new memorial to Diogo Jota by artist Emma Rodgers unveiled today outside Anfield stadium
    1 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  2. Emma said: "The fluidity of the ribbon is based on Jota's movement on the pitch; he was very balletic but also very dynamic. It was a case of having the fluid movements but having the sharp twists showing how he could move around the pitch in the sculpture at the same time."
    2 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  3. "I wanted to keep it light and uplifting," Emma said. "The bronze surface comes through because I wanted it to be light, but then you've got red, green and gold for the Portuguese flag. The red also represents Liverpool and Wolverhampton - all the teams he's played and loved throughout his life."
    3 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  4. Seen from the right angle, the sculpture's twisting forms and integrated numbers combine to spell out "LOVE", a detail deliberately designed to be discovered as people walk around it.
    4 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  5. Among the first supporters to see the memorial installed was lifelong Liverpool fan Joan Connah, who stumbled across the work while walking home through Stanley Park. The 78-year-old, who has supported Liverpool for so long she cannot remember when it began, stopped to watch as the memorial was put in place.
    "I was on my way back from the park when I saw all the work happening. So I stayed to see what was going on. I think it's gorgeous, it's absolutely brilliant. It will be nice to have a proper place where people can come and lay flowers. He'll never be forgotten."
    5 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  1. Jota's song has been hand-carved across the surface, appearing and disappearing as it wraps around the sculpture, while the colours reference both Portugal and the clubs he represented.
    6 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  2. Parts of Jota's song run fluidly throughout the sculpture
    7 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  3. The heart design is a nod to one of Jota's celebrations on the pitch
    8 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  1. 'Forever 20'
    9 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  2. Emma said: "One of the roses that was left I soaked into the wax, and one of the consoles as well, which was another one of his celebrations and favourite pastimes. I wanted to feel like he had placed it down and paused the game."
    10 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)
  3. Emma said the past nine months have been a "labour of love"
    11 of 11(Image: Liverpool Echo)