Diogo Jota 'Is Not Going To Stay' With Liverpool, Former Teammate Says

Pacos de Ferreira midfielder Stephen Eustaquio thinks his former teammate and Liverpool star Diogo Jota, whom he often spoke to in the dressing room in the past, is not staying with the Reds.

Prior to becoming a goalscorer for the Wolves and Liverpool’s star signing in the summer, Jota was the captain of the Portugal under-21 team. At the time, the Portuguese striker played alongside Eustaquio, who stated that he knew Jota in and outside the pitch.

Speaking to Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, Eustaquio heaped praise on Jota for his consistent work ethic regardless of the team he is playing for. However, the 23-year-old suggested that despite having a promising debut season with Liverpool, Jota is likely to aim for more and might leave Jurgen Klopp’s side in the process.

“[Diogo] Jota was in Pacos, Atletico Madrid, Porto, Liverpool. He works a lot,” Eustaquio said. “He is a very hard-working person, very delicate with the ball; he plays a lot. He is not going to stay there; he is going to go higher. I shared a dressing room with him, he was captain of the Portugal Under-21 team.”

Until then, Eustaquio is happy for Jota and what his former teammate has achieved in Liverpool so far. He truly believes that the former La Liga star “deserves” everything he has been receiving from the Reds.

“In bad times he [Jota] showed a very strong personality,” the midfielder added. “He is a very humble person and deserves to be where he is.”

In his first campaign with Liverpool, Jota proved that the reigning Premier League champions made the right decision in signing him. In fact, he has already scored seven goals in 10 games for the Reds, including a sensational hat-trick in the 5-0 win against Atalanta.

Former Liverpool star John Barnes is also pleased with Jota’s fine form and admitted that nobody expected him to emerge as one of the club’s reliable goalscorers. However, Barnes also credited Klopp for doing a great job at managing Jota, something the player might not experience in other big-name clubs such as Barcelona and Real Madrid.

"I have been, I thought he was a good player for Wolves, I thought he would do well but I don’t think anyone would imagine he’d be doing this well," Barnes recently said of Jota.

"If [Diogo] Jota goes to Barcelona, for example, he won’t go there and score loads of goals or play as well," he added. "Jota is a fantastic player, but there’s no way that Jota would be able to go to Real Madrid and do the same thing, it’s all down to Jurgen Klopp and finding those players that suits his style."