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Clubs That Have Retired Shirt Numbers as Liverpool Immortalise Diogo Jota’s No. 20

Sushan Chakraborty Written by Sports EditorSushan Chakraborty
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Diogo Jota FC 25

Liverpool forward Diogo Jota has died after a fatal car accident in Spain.

His brother, Andre, who played in the second division of the Portuguese league, also died in the crash.

Jota, 28, is survived by his newly-wed wife, Rute Cardoso, and three children, ages four, two, and one.

Since the tragic news broke, tributes have been pouring in, with fans, sporting personalities, and even the British Prime Minister expressing their heartfelt condolences.

Some Liverpool fans urged the club to immortalise Jota by retiring his shirt number, and the club have responded. The Reds have officially decided to retire Jota’s No. 20, paying him the highest tribute they could at this incredibly challenging time.

In the list below, we will take a look at some other clubs that have retired shirt numbers in honour of their players.

Note: This list only includes shirt retirements in response to the players’ untimely deaths. We have overlooked legacy retirements.

Liverpool to Retire Shirt No. 20 to Immortalise Diogo Jota: Five Top Clubs Who Have Done the Same

Manchester City – No. 23

On June 26, 2003, Marc-Vivien Foe collapsed on the pitch during the Confederations Cup semi-final between his country, Cameroon, and Colombia. Shortly after, he died of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a heart condition.

Manchester City, who had signed Foe the previous summer, paid their respect by retiring his No. 23 shirt.

Like Diogo Jota, Foe was also 28 at the time of his demise. He scored 9 goals in 35 Premier League games for Man City.

Sevilla – No. 16

LaLiga side Sevilla retired the No. 16 shirt after the death of 22-year-old Antonio Puerta. Puerta collapsed on the pitch during a LaLiga match on August 25. He died after suffering a cardiac arrest just three days later. Puerta was suffering from a genetic condition that contributed to his untimely demise.

Sevilla initially retired the No. 16, but due to LaLiga number restrictions, they have occasionally had to assign the number. However, to honour the legacy of club graduate Puerta, they have tried to assign the No. 16 primarily to their academy graduates.

Espanyol – No. 21

August 8, 2009, Dani Jarque died of a heart attack in his hotel room during pre-season training in Italy. He was the captain and leader of the team. After his tragic death, Espanyol retired No. 21 — the number he most frequently wore.

Jarque was a dear friend of Barcelona and Spain legend Andres Iniesta. After he scored the winning goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup final, Iniesta paid tribute to his friend by displaying his name on his undershirt.

Espanyol fans still only remember Jarque, chanting his name in the 21st minute during home matches without fail.

Fiorentina – No. 13

On May 4, 2018, Davide Astori, the captain of Serie A side Fiorentina, died in his sleep from cardiac arrest. The 31-year-old was travelling with the team when it happened.

Astori was a celebrated figure in Italian football; every club and their supporters mourned his death.

Fiorentina paid him the highest tribute, choosing to retire his shirt number 13. His former club, Cagliari, also followed suit.

Emiliano Sala – No. 9

On January 21, 2019, Emiliano Sala was on a plane to Cardiff City after completing his switch from Nantes. Unfortunately, Sala never got to play for Cardiff, as he died in a horrific plane crash. He was only 28 years old.

After the news was confirmed, Nantes decided to retire Sala’s No. 9 shirt, despite it being one of the most meaningful numbers in football.

Sala played 133 games for the French club in all competitions, scoring 48 goals.

Sushan Chakraborty Written by Sports EditorSushan Chakraborty
Sushan Chakraborty has been writing professionally since debuting with 90min in 2017. He has since typed out thousands of articles, learning the trade from some of the smartest minds in the business. Now at Sportscasting, he is striving to whip up his best articles yet.
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