Rute Cardoso has issued a statement to address people impersonating her on TikTok

Diogo Jota’s wife, Rute Cardoso, has taken to social media to address people impersonating her online. The mom-of-three issued the update on her Instagram account.

The 29-year-old shared an update in Portuguese and English, as she urged followers to be aware that anyone claiming to be her on TikTok is a fake account. She said: “I don’t have TikTok, any accounts with my name are fake. Thank you.”

Rute has received an outpouring of support since the tragedy earlier this summer when her husband and his brother, Andre Silva, died in a car accident. She was in attendance at Anfield for Liverpool FC’s opening Premier League game of the season against Bournemouth, when the crowd paid tribute to the Portuguese forward who will always be remembered as the Reds number 20.

Fans inside Anfield repeatedly paid tribute to Jota throughout the game by singing his famous number 20 song. An emotional moment after the final whistle saw Mohamed Salah tearfully applaud the crowd as the song continued to ring around Anfield.

Rute Cardoso posted the update last night

Ahead of the game, Arne Slot said in his programme notes how everyone associated with the club will always be there for the family. He said: “As I have said previously, the tributes that have been paid throughout the football world, and especially within the LFC community, have been truly special, and I know that tonight we will come together to honour them once more.

“I believe that Diogo’s wife, his children and his family will be in attendance and it is important that, as a club, we show that they will always have our love and support as they deal with this most tragic of situations. We are there for them always.”

Rute was also in attendance at Molineux Stadium on Sunday as Wolverhampton Wanderers paid a poignant tribute to Jota and Silva. Rute married Jota just two weeks before he died.

In her first social media post after the tragic incident, she took to Instagram a month on from the wedding to reflect on the day. A translation of the post said: “One month of our ‘until death do us part’. Forever, your white girl.”

Jota and Silva were laid to rest last month in their home city of Gondomar. The ECHO visited their home city and heard from locals about how much the footballing brothers meant to their community.

A childhood neighbour, Cosme Oliveira, told the ECHO: “They both are the meaning of humble. The passion for football. They never lost their roots here. They never forgot this little town and what we represent. The good memories that we have with them here will always live.”

The academy at Gondomar Sporte Club was renamed in honour of Jota in 2022 as the forward played for the team until he was 17 years old before he joined Paços de Ferreira.

To commemorate his time at the club, a mural was created featuring an image of Jota as a child in the Gondomar kit and then later in his career when he represented the Portugal national side.

A quote on the centre of the mural reads : “Nao e importante de onde vimos mas sim para onde vamos.” A translation of this reads: “It’s not important where we come from but where we’re going.”

Members of the community told the ECHO about the meaning behind the quote as Jota’s journey to become a Premier League star was one of the reasons he symbolised so much to the people of Gondomar.

A Gondomar native named Goncalo Ferreira said this unique journey is why he is such an inspirational figure to the people in the small city located 7km east of Porto. He said: “It’s not usual in football.

“When kids are 12/13, they go to the biggest clubs like Porto, Sporting and Benfica. He didn’t go that way. He marked his career in football in a special way because he didn’t follow everyone.

“He followed his convictions.” Rita Silva also echoed the meaning of the quotes as she explained how Jota was an inspiration to his community.

The 17-year-old said: “He was the boy who got out. This is a small city and all of us dream to win in life and go to be the best in every work field we can. He got out – he was the one who got out and he was an example for everyone. He was a kid like us. He went to our school. He played in our fields and he won in life.”