Virgil van Dijk was furious as Wembley’s air of solemnity was broken on Sunday as a small group of Crystal Palace supporters disrupted a minute’s silence for Liverpool forward Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, ahead of the Community Shield. The two brothers tragically lost their lives in a car accident in Spain last month, and both sets of players had gathered at the centre circle to honour their memory.
Minute’s silence for Jota disruptedVan Dijk blasts Crystal Palace fansSlot played down disruption afterwardsFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Referee Chris Kavanagh was forced to cut the tribute short after noise emerged from the Palace section of the stadium, drawing sharp disapproval from around the ground. The unwanted disturbance cast a shadow over an otherwise high-octane clash that ended 2-2 before Palace snatched victory in a penalty shootout.
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Van Dijk did not hide his feelings after the incident, describing himself as “disappointed” with the behaviour of those responsible.
“Yeah, I’m disappointed,” Van Dijk said. “That’s the only thing I can say. There was plenty trying to sush it down, but obviously that doesn’t help them. It is what it is. You can’t control…… how many people were here? 80,000, so yeah, it’s disappointing to hear that. But if those persons can go home and be happy with themselves, then……”
THE BIGGER PICTURE
However, Liverpool boss Arne Slot took a more diplomatic approach, hinting that the disruption may not have been deliberate.
“I don’t think this was planned. Maybe the fan was not aware of the minute’s silence and was happy and tried to cheer for his team, then the Palace fans tried to calm him down and our fans reacted," he said. “I don’t think they had a bad intention. I’m a positive person. I look at the respect paid to Diogo and Andre across the world.”
TRIBUTES FROM LIVERPOOL & PALACE
Before the whistle blew, there was a deeply moving scene as Liverpool legend Ian Rush and Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish stepped forward to lay wreaths in memory of Jota and his brother.
