The winger who betrayed loyalty. Criticism against Luis Díaz (28, Liverpool) is growing stronger.
The Portuguese media 'O Jogo' reported on the 10th (Korean time) that "Díaz attended a '7-day memorial mass' for Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva." The mass was held a week after the two brothers died in a traffic accident in Spain, at the church in the Gondomar parish, Jota's hometown. Díaz, who quietly kept his seat, mourned the deceased with a solemn expression, but the flames of criticism against him are not easily extinguished.
The issue was Jota's funeral. Jota, who was known to have been close to Díaz during his lifetime, showed special camaraderie by offering his home for free when Díaz joined FC Porto. He also was the one who, when Díaz's father was kidnapped in Colombia, raised Díaz's uniform in a ceremony wishing for his safe return.
However, Díaz came under fire when he was captured attending a party event hosted by a YouTuber in Barranquilla, Colombia, on the day of Jota's funeral. In the video, he was seen smiling and dancing with friends, and this scene was fully shared on social media. This happened while his Liverpool teammates and figures from the Portuguese football scene were all attending Jota's funeral to pay their respects.
Public opinion reacted strongly. Criticism erupted that 'Díaz repaid Jota's loyalty in life with betrayal.' One fan wrote on social media, "Choosing a party over the funeral is disappointing both as a human and a teammate." Even Liverpool FC permanently retired Jota's number 20 jersey and fully conveyed the remaining salary of about 27.2 billion won to his family, showing the utmost respect.
In this situation, Díaz's actions appeared even more contrasting. Eventually, after a week, he made an appearance at the memorial mass. Only then did he wipe away tears and lower his head, but fans' feelings had already turned. The majority reaction is, "It's too late." Even players like Alisson from Liverpool, who could not attend the funeral due to travel issues, attended the mass that day, further diminishing the persuasiveness of Díaz's prior actions.
Meanwhile, Díaz is reportedly asking for a salary increase or transfer during this summer's transfer market, receiving interest from Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Amidst Jota's death, the preseason schedule was canceled, allowing Díaz to buy time, and he is known to have thrown a 'final warning' to the club. The conflicting actions of attending the memorial mass and insisting on a transfer are expected to further amplify the criticism against Díaz.
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