Some fans may be surprised to find that Diogo Jota is not the genuine name of their favourite Portuguese striker.
Jota, who has 50 goals in 131 outings for Liverpool since coming from fellow Premier League side Wolves in 2020, was born under a different name.
His parents named him Diogo Jose Teixeira da Silva when he was born in the Porto neighbourhood of Massarelos in 1995.
When he first started playing football, he would ask for the name ‘Diogo J’ on the back of his shirt to distinguish himself from other players in the squad with the surname Silva, which is the most prevalent surname in Portugal.
The letter ‘J’ is pronounced the same way as Jota’s name in Portuguese.
It is spoken with a harsh ‘J’ sound, unlike in Spain, where the name Jota is pronounced with a ‘H’ sound, as former Brentford, Birmingham, and Aston Villa player Jota is.
Because Diogo Jota wore the letter ‘J’ on the back of his shirt, it earned a nickname among his teammates.
“After all, that’s what they read every time the kid started toward the area and his back was the only thing they could see,” Portuguese outlet Expresso explained in 2016.
Also Read: The untold story of Diogo Jota
When Jota first joined Wolves on loan from Atletico Madrid in 2017, he wore the name ‘Silva’ instead of his usual ‘Diogo J’ on the back of his shirt.
The Molineux club explained that this was due to EFL rules requiring all players to wear their full surname on their shirts.
When Wolves were promoted to the Premier League for the 2018-19 season, Jota was able to reclaim his preferred nickname, which he still uses at Anfield.
