Eswatini-based Nigerian pastor and football promoter, Victor Ukozor Macdonald has joined the world in mourning Liverpool FC of England striker, Diogo Jota, who died tragically in a car accident on Thursday.
Sports247 reports that Jota’s death, which came just ten days after his wedding, occurred along with that of his younger brother, as the car they were travelling in suffered a burst tyre on the striker’s way to board a ferry back to England.
While joining the football world in mourning the 28-year-old Portugal international, who recently won the English Premier League with Liverpool and UEFA Nations League with his country’s national team, Pastor Macdonald pointed at many lessons from the disaster.
The former players’ agent, who brokered deals for the like of Paul Obiefule, Mobi Oparaku, Abiola Dauda, Victor Ezeji and Perpetua Nkwocha, noted that the biggest lesson is the need for people to show love at every point in time.
He added in a tribute sent to Sports247 from his base in Mbabane, “Let go of grudges, ego and the urge to be right, because none of that matters where we are all going. Speak life into others.
“Be the reason someone still believes in kindness. And, above all, make peace with yourself. Because when your time comes and your story ends, may silence that follows your name be filled with peace, not regret.”
The native of Orlu in Imo State and initiator of Paul Bassey Fans Club while an undergraduate at Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Enugu, now the lead pastor at God’s Glory Ministries (GGM) in the Kingdom of Eswatini, also used the opportunity to preach fairplay in all aspects of football rivalry.
Pastor Victor, who formerly operated Vejle Football Academy in Owerri and Lagos, concluded: “I may be a card-carrying member of Arsenal and Real Madrid, but Diogo Jota was one of our opponents that I admired.
“To my good friend, Joseph Ndlovu, and all the Liverpool fans around the world, You Will Never Walk Alone. To his parents, take heart. I know it is unbearable to lose your children, but who are we to question God?”
