The little-known reason why Diogo Jota doesn't use his real name on his Liverpool shirt

Diogo Jota has been with Liverpool since 2020 when he signed from Wolves for a fee of £41 million, but fans may not be aware of his real name.

The Portugal international has scored 64 goals in 166 games for the club, winning two Carabao Cups and one FA Cup in his tenure.

With Liverpool leading the way at the top of the table, he will be hoping to add the Premier League to his trophy collection and become the 11th Portuguese player to win England's top division.

But while he is in a good position to add his name to the history books, Jota was actually born Diogo Jose Teixeira da Silva.

However, with Silva being the most popular surname in Portugal, the former Atletico Madrid man started wearing the name 'Diogo J' on the back of his shirt to avoid any confusion with teammates.

Jota has been teammates with the likes of Bernardo Silva, Andre Silva and Rafa Silva with the Portugal national team.

In the Portuguese language, the letter 'J' is pronounced the same way as Jota's name is said - and unlike in Spain, it is pronounced with a hard 'J', 'as opposed to a 'H' sound.

And because he had the letter 'J' on his shirt, it soon became a nickname with teammates - with Portuguese outlet Expresso explaining: "After all, that's what they read every time the kid started toward the area and his back was the only thing they could see".

Jota moved to England with Wolves in 2017, first joining on loan when they were in the Championship. But he actually had 'Silva' on the back of his shirt to begin with, with the club clarifying that at the time, EFL rules stated that players must have their surname on shirts.

Jota wore 'Silva' on the back of his shirt at Wolves. Image: Getty

Wolves were promoted under Nuno Espirito and Jota has worn 'Diogo. J' in the Premier League for the Molineux club and current employers Liverpool.

Jota's 2024/25 season has been disrupted by injury, limiting him to just 627 minutes of action in the Premier League.

He is, however, in contention for the final Merseyside derby clash with Everton at Goodison Park on Tuesday night.

Liverpool have the chance to go nine points clear of second-placed Arsenal with a victory.