Virgil van Dijk has expressed his gratitude to both Liverpool fans and Preston North End following the heartfelt tributes paid to Diogo Jota at Deepdale on Sunday.

Virgil van Dijk and Liverpool's players watch on as fans pay tribute to Diogo Jota

Van Dijk concluded his message with a tribute to Jota, stating: "Forever 20!!!" followed by a heart emoji.

Liverpool confirmed its decision to retire Jota's number 20 jersey on Friday evening at 20:20.

Preston manager sends classy message to Liverpool and Arne Slot after Diogo Jota tributes	Preston 1-3 Liverpool: Emotional tributes to Diogo Jota as Reds begin pre-season with a win	Liverpool: Paul Heckingbottom proud as Preston help commemorate Diogo Jota with emotional pre-season tributes

Following discussions with Jota's wife, Rute, and family - who visited Anfield on Friday (July 11) to pay their respects at the memorial site dedicated to both brothers - the club decided to permanently retire the shirt in tribute to the Portuguese player.



Liverpool fans showed their love for Jota at Preston

This marked a first for Liverpool, as Jota became the inaugural player to receive such an honor, with the retirement of the number 20 shirt extending across all levels of the club, encompassing the men's first team, women's team and various Academy sides.

"By retiring this squad number, we are making it eternal — and therefore never to be forgotten,” FSG CEO of Football Michael Edwards said

“Diogo joined us in 2020, he won us number 20, and he wore — with honour, distinction and affection — the number 20.

"As far as Liverpool Football Club is concerned, he will be forever our number 20."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story