Kalidou Koulibaly Praised As Ruben Neves Bursts Into Tears During Diogo Jota Tribute

Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal crashed out of the FIFA Club World Cup at the hands of Fluminense – but ahead of facing the Brazilian outfit, Kalidou Koulibaly showed a touch of class as Ruben Neves struggled to make it through the minutes’ silence for Diogo Jota.

Ahead of kick-off, both sets of players gathered around the centre-circle in memory of Liverpool and Portugal forward Jota, who passed away alongside his younger brother Andre Silva in the early hours of Thursday morning in a car crash.

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Porto-born Jota was on his way back to the United Kingdom after undergoing lung surgery – and reports have suggested that he was ‘advised not to fly’ by medics. Instead, the two brothers drove and the tyre of his Lamborghini blew out while overtaking.

Tributes from all corners of the footballing globe – from Jose Mourinho to Lionel Messi – have poured in for the 28-year-old and his Portugal teammates Neves and Joao Cancelo both broke down in tears during the emotional minutes’ silence.

Koulibaly Praised for Actions During Minutes Silence

‘Those little things that mean everything’

Emotions overcame the whole stadium – but it hit hard for the two Al-Hilal players in particular. The aforementioned Neves, in particular, had played alongside Jota for club and country for over a decade and his Instagram post highlighted how close they were.

The ex-Wolves man wrote: “I’m going to make sure you’re always present, and I’ll make sure your loved ones never lack anything while you’re there, far away but thinking of us, waiting for us. Life has brought us together, and now it can’t tear us apart.”

Neves, spanning over a ten-year period, had lined up alongside Jota on 164 occasions and, as expected, he needed to be consoled during the minutes’ silence as he was brought to tears. Fluminense players, wearing black armbands as a show of their respect, also took part in the silence.

As the players stood around the middle of the park, Neves was sandwiched in between Koulibaly and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic – and the former has been praised for pulling the latter closer to Neves as a means of giving him extra support.

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DAZN posted the footage on their X (formerly Twitter) page – and one fan reposted it with the caption: “It’s a really small thing, but Koulibaly nudging Savic to also show Ruben support is so sweet.”

And that is the sentiment all round. One supporter, highlighting that the ex-Chelsea defender is a ‘natural leader’ said: “A natural born leader. Those little things that mean everything.” A second fan kept it short and simple: “Absolutely class from Koulibaly.”

“What a thoughtful act. And the other guy is quickly realising his mistake is also great,” another said. A final fan wrote that Koulibaly’s innate leadership quality seeped through. They wrote: “Koulibaly’s gesture here is everything you want from a leader.”

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