Champions League final: Liverpool’s Alberto Moreno pays tribute to late Jose Antonio Reyes following death
Moreno revealed a shirt of his former Sevilla teammate that read in Spanish ‘I love you brother’ following his tragic death at the weekend
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Your support makes all the difference.Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno paid tribute to late Spanish footballer Jose Antonio Reyes by revealing a shirt reading “I love you brother” in the wake of their Champions League final celebrations.
News broke on Saturday morning of the tragic passing of Reyes, with the former Arsenal, Sevilla and Atletico Madrid forward losing his life in a car accident in Spain.
The 35-year-old was playing for Spanish Segunda Division side Extremadura and was due to play on Sunday when he died in a traffic collision on a road between Utrera and Seville, with confirmation coming that a relative of the footballer also died in the accident.
A minute’s silence was held before the Champions League final between Liverpool and Spurs, where fans inside Atletico’s Wanda Metropolitano started to applaud in his memory, and his funeral will take place on Monday.
In the immediate aftermath of Liverpool’s 2-0 victory over Spurs, Spanish left-back Moreno revealed a picture of Reyes on his shirt with the message “Te Quiero Hermano” written on it, translating to “I love you brother”.
Moreno and Reyes played together at Sevilla between 2012 – when Reyes returned to his childhood club – and 2014 when Moreno left for Anfield, with the pair winning the Europa League together in 2013/14.
Earlier in the day, Sevilla tweeted: "We couldn't be confirming worse news. Beloved Sevilla star José Antonio Reyes has died in a traffic collision. Rest in peace."
Arsenal added: "Everyone at Arsenal is devastated by the shocking news that our former player Jose Antonio Reyes has died in a traffic collision in Spain.
"Jose Antonio Reyes: 1983-2019. Rest in peace, Jose"
Reyes was the youngest player in Sevilla history to make his debut, making his first appearance for the club at just 16-years-old.
A move to Arsenal would come in the January of 2004 and he went on to win the league as part of the club's 'Invincible' season where they won the Premier League title undefeated.
Stops at Real Madrid on loan, where he won La Liga, and Atletico Madrid, where he won the Europa League twice, came before an emotional return to Sevilla in 2012.
He would go on to win the Europa League three more times at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan.
He left the club in 2016 and played for Espanyol, Cordoba and Chinese side Xinjiang Tianshan Leopard before returning to Spain to join Extremadura earlier this year.
The second division club said in a statement: "With a broken heart Extremadura UD announce the death of their player Jose Antonio Reyes in a traffic accident."
Espanyol added: "From RCD Espanyol we wish to express our heartfelt condolences and send all our support to the family and to those at Sevilla."
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