Cancelo and Rúben Neves' tears for their "best friend" Diogo Jota: "They called him in the middle of the night and he couldn't sleep."

There was no other name in the air. Diogo Jota was the star of the Fluminense-Al Hilal match and the Palmeiras-Chelsea match . It couldn't be any other way. In the first match, his former teammates Joao Cancelo and Rúben Neves couldn't hold back their tears, especially the latter, his "best friend" in the world of football, during the minute of silence before the first match. In the second, Pedro Neto held up a jersey in his honor. Everyone had his name on their heads.

Meanwhile, from MetLife Stadium , Jude Bellingham reflected on "one of the first things I did when I heard the news" before Real Madrid vs. Dortmund. " I wrote to my brother. You get quite emotional. He was a great human being. From here, we send a message of love to his family and friends," declared the English midfielder.

Aurelien Tchouaméni and Arda Güler , the other two Real Madrid players who participated in the mixed zone prior to the Club World Cup quarterfinals, expressed similar sentiments. "Before I begin to answer, I would like to express my condolences to the family and friends of Diogo Jota and his brother. We will never forget them," said the young Turk. For his part, the Frenchman asserted that "it affected us a little more."

"There's a guy like Trent who I knew a little better. We've played against him, and it's difficult for all of us in the world of football. We just want to send a message to his family , that the world of football is with them, and there's not much more I can say," said Tchouaméni, moved by the situation.

"It's difficult for everyone; in the end, anything can happen in life. Now we have the chance to play a football match, and we have to enjoy it because we don't know what will happen the next day. That's life," the French midfielder added.

The three Real Madrid players weren't the only ones on the expedition to react to the news of the deaths of Diogo Jota and his brother. "On behalf of myself and the club, I want to send our deepest condolences to the family of Diogo Jota and André Silva, and a big hug," declared Xabi Alonso at the start of his press conference. "We're starting the day with a feeling that makes you reflect, that we've spoken, and from here, I want to send them a lot of strength," added the Basque coach.

The Portuguese striker's name was echoed in the stadiums that hosted the first two Club World Cup quarter-finals . Fluminense pulled off a surprise victory against Al Hilal (2-1) and Chelsea defeated Palmeiras (1-2), both reaching the semi-finals of the tournament, but the event was the least of it. Every club had players who had been affected in one way or another by Jota's tragedy.

"It's not easy. Rúben Neves is a close friend of Jota . His family called him in the middle of the night last night and he couldn't sleep, Cancelo too... It affected us all. I congratulate them both because they competed and did their jobs to the best of their ability," said Bono, the Al Hilal goalkeeper and teammate of Neves and Cancelo.

In a video from a few months ago, Diogo Jota admitted that " my best friend in the world of football is Rúben Neves ." The two fellow Portuguese players shared the national team, training camps, and traveled together during every international break. They were even part of the same dressing room during their time at Wolverhampton.