ORLANDO — Al Hilal coach Simone Inzaghi has admitted Rúben Neves and João Cancelo have found it “difficult” to prepare for the FIFA Club World Cup quarterfinal against Fluminense following the death of their international teammate Diogo Jota.
Liverpool forward Jota, 28, died in a car crash in Spain on Thursday alongside his brother André Silva.
Neves and Cancelo have both represented Portugal alongside Jota and were informed of the news while in the U.S. with club side Al Hilal, who face Fluminense in Orlando on Friday.
“We all know it’s a very sad day because of what happened to Diogo and André,” Inzaghi told a news conference on Thursday. “These things should never happen. We’re all aware of the tragedy. We have two Portugal players Rúben Neves and João Cancelo who were friends to them.
“Today has been a very difficult day for all of us. We tried to work in the same way but the atmosphere was different. It’s a very, very sad tragedy.”
Cancelo was among a number of teammates to post a tribute to Jota following the news.
“Today, we didn’t just wake up without two players,” he posted on social media. “Today, three children woke up without their father. Today, a mother and a father woke up without their two sons.
“Today, a wife woke up without her husband by her side. Today, we all woke up in shock.”
Al Hilal and Fluminense will face off in the only quarterfinal which does not include a European team, with the Brazilian side reaching the last eight by beating domestic rivals Botafogo in the round of 16.
Coach Renato Gaucho told his players to “make history” when they line up at Camping World Stadium.
The 62-year-old also branded his team the “ugly duckling” of the quarterfinalists because they don’t have the same financial resources as Al Hilal — backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund — or European heavyweights like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Chelsea.
“We are living this magical moment with Fluminenese,” said Gaucho. “We have the opportunity of playing in the semifinals among the best teams in the world. I don’t know when another opportunity like this will come, if ever.
“Looking at all of these teams [in the quarterfinals] Fluminense is the ugly duckling, in financial terms at least.
“Football is decided on the pitch. We have certain difficulties when it comes to the budget so there is a gap with them [Al-Hilal]. Outside the pitch they have different conditions financially, but on the pitch it’s a different story.”