Kylian Mbappe dedicates goal to Diogo Jota with touching celebration in Real Madrid victory | OneFootball

Kylian Mbappe dedicated his goal in Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday night to Diogo Jota.

Tributes have poured in across the world of football towards the Liverpool forward, who died in a car crash in Spain in the early hours of Thursday morning which also claimed the life of his brother Andre Silva.

Both men were laid to rest at a funeral ceremony in their native Portugal on Saturday, which was attended by Arne Slot’s squad and hundreds of mourners.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was unable to be there in person due to his ongoing involvement with Real Madrid at the Club World Cup, and he paid his own poignant tribute to his former Anfield teammate after their quarter-final win.

Mbappe dedicates goal to Diogo Jota

Los Blancos were leading 2-1 in the fourth minute of stoppage time when Mbappe scored with an exquisite scissor-kick finish, but the manner in which he celebrated the goal was much more significant.

As he approached a pitchside TV camera, the Frenchman made a ’20’ gesture with his fingers and then put his hands together in prayer as he dedicated the moment to Diogo Jota.

Image via DAZN Football

A touching gesture from Mbappe

Although the two players had never been teammates of each other, their paths crossed on a couple of occasions at international level in recent years, most notably in the 2-2 draw between Portugal and France at the European Championship four years ago.

Like everyone else in the world of football, Mbappe would’ve been shocked and saddened by the tragedy in northern Spain in recent days, and he’ll have been thinking of his teammate Trent, who became a close friend of Diogo Jota during their five years together at Liverpool.

The gesture from the French forward will be warmly appreciated by the families and friends of the two men who died in the horrific car crash, and indeed by all on Merseyside, in Wolverhampton and in Gondomar.

Football might be a global sport, but in times like this, everybody involved in the game unites as a tight-knit community to show solidarity with the people closest to Diogo and his brother Andre, as Real Madrid’s number 9 did with his poignant celebration.

You can see Mbappe’s goal celebration below, via @Football__Tweet on X: