Beto has revealed Diogo Jota helped him settle in Liverpool after he joined Everton in the summer of 2023.
Jota was tragically killed in a car crash, along with his brother, Andre Silva, at the age of 28. The incident occurred in Zamora, northern Spain, on July 3.
There has since been an outpouring of tributes to the Liverpool star from across the world of football, including Beto and other players from the blue half of Merseyside.
Beto was among the Everton delegation which laid flowers outside Anfield following the news of Jota’s death.
And the striker, who like Jota was born in Portugal, said the late Liverpool forward had sent him an Instagram message shortly after his arrival in the city following his £25.8million move from Torino.
The message from Jota read: ”I’m happy for you. If you need anything in the city, I can help you. Just give me a shout.’
Beto was part of an Everton delegation that laid tributes for Diogo Jota after his death
The striker said he is still expecting a hostile welcome from Liverpool fans during the first Merseyside derby of the season
‘Of all the big names from Portugal that play in England, he was the first one to text me,’ Beto said. ‘The day I signed or the next day.
‘You have Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes and he was the first guy, the first person.
‘We were not friends but, you know, when you play against Portuguese players and everything, we normally stop, we speak a little bit.
‘After every game that we play against Liverpool, we talk a little bit. I ask, “How is everything?” Not just because he was Portuguese, but he was a really, really nice person. Humble. And you can see what everyone says about him.
‘The day that thing happened, I was at home in Portugal. That day I would travel to Manchester to come here for the pre-season. And I was shocked. I was shocked because Diogo was a really good guy.’
Beto’s Everton face Liverpool in the first Merseyside derby of the season at Anfield on Saturday lunchtime.
The 27-year-old said he saw a ‘togetherness’ between the two clubs in the wake of Jota’s passing – but will still be expecting a hostile welcome at Anfield.
He said: ‘Sometimes they say: “Beto, you’re s***”, “Van Dijk is going to do this to you,” “We’re going to batter you guys”, “We’re going to do this.”
Jota died at the age of 28 in July and there has since been an outpouring of tributes to the star
‘If I go to Anfield on a Saturday and they boo me it’s normal.
‘They’re not going to be thinking: ‘Oh, Beto is a good guy because he went to lay flowers for Diogo.’ It’s not the same.
‘But when it matters, when it was about life, they were there because they are human.
‘Of course, I have respect for Diogo and the Liverpool community.
‘ I go there to play and to win and I will not try to have any action that shows them disrespect because when I went there, they showed me respect.’
