“Carry His Dream” – Jota’s Widow’s Emotional Plea to Robertson

The widow of late Portugal forward Diogo Jota has urged Scotland captain Andrew Robertson to carry her husband’s World Cup dream with him as he prepares to lead his country at football’s biggest tournament.

Jota died aged 28 in a car crash last July, alongside his brother Andre Silva, after helping Portugal secure qualification for the World Cup. He won 49 caps but never played at a World Cup after missing the 2022 tournament through a calf injury.

In an emotional letter published by FIFA on Tuesday as part of its “Letters that Unite” series, Jota’s widow, Rute Cardoso, the mother of his three children, reflected on the close friendship between the two former Liverpool teammates and the dream they shared of playing on the World Cup stage.

“Diogo often spoke of you. Of the friendship you built, the battles you fought together, the challenges, the laughter, the conversations about football and about dreams,” Cardoso wrote. “The World Cup was one of those dreams, a dream that the two of you nurtured, side by side, with the same passion with which you took to the pitch.”

Cardoso said she was deeply moved by Robertson’s comments after Scotland secured qualification in November. “When I heard your words and learnt what you felt on that day when Scotland qualified for the World Cup, after so many years of waiting, I realised that Diogo never truly left the pitch,” she wrote.

She added: “By achieving that moment and securing your place at the World Cup, you won’t be going alone. You’ll be taking his dream with you too. And when you step on to the pitch, I know it won’t just be you walking out. Diogo will be with you in your thoughts, in your steps, in your heart.”

Cardoso also thanked Robertson for keeping her husband’s memory alive. “Thank you for not forgetting him. Thank you for taking him with you. Thank you for turning the pain of loss into strength and into something so beautiful,” she wrote. “He would be, and is, incredibly proud of you. Cherish that dream, Andy. Live it for yourself and for him.”

Robertson guided Scotland to their first World Cup qualification since 1998, following a 4-2 victory over Denmark in November. In the emotional aftermath, the captain admitted his late friend had been at the forefront of his thoughts. “I couldn’t get my mate Diogo Jota out of my head today,” he said. “We spoke so much about going to the World Cup because he missed the last one with Portugal and I did with Scotland. I know he’ll be smiling over me today.”

Robertson, who is moving to Tottenham Hotspur this summer after leaving Liverpool, was filmed by FIFA reading the letter. Responding to the message, he vowed to honour Jota throughout the tournament. “I’ll carry him in my heart and I know he’ll be with me come the first game, come the second game, come the third game and hopefully beyond that,” he said. “I’m not only just playing for me. I’m playing for both of us.”

The World Cup runs from 11 June to 19 July, with Scotland facing Haiti on Sunday, Morocco on 19 June and Brazil.