Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, brother die in car crash

Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota and his brother, André Silva, were killed in a car crash near Zamora, Spain, police said Thursday.

Liverpool FC, Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro and the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) also confirmed the incident.

The Spanish Civil Guard confirmed to The Associated Press that Jota and his brother were found dead after their car went off a road on an isolated stretch of highway about an hour west of Zamora. Authorities said the car — a Lamborghini, according to police — was in flames.

Firefighters were called in as the fire spread to nearby vegetation, authorities said.

Police were investigating the causes of the crash, which happened past midnight local time. They said there were no other vehicles involved. The bodies were undergoing forensic analysis.

It wasn’t clear who was driving the car. Police were investigating whether the crash happened because of a blown tire.

Jota, who was 28, and his brother, who was 25, were both Portuguese players and the only ones in the car, police said.

Jota’s death comes weeks after he married Rute Cardoso and in a social media post wrote, “Yes to forever.” They have three children, the youngest born last year.