“As hard as it was to do it, I had to push myself to focus on what my job and role was. I tried to do it as best as I could, but it was difficult and I am not going to lie about that.
“[Jota] was one of my close friends – and I am sure that’s what he would have wanted me to do. I’m sure we would have had a laugh and joke about the assist as well. He was there with me, I am sure.”
Alexander-Arnold said the Portuguese forward was “someone who lit up the room when he was in it”.
“I shared the dressing room with him for five years – amazing memories on and off the pitch,” he added.
“It goes without saying he will never be forgotten by anyone. He will live long in all our memories for the amazing man and the player he was.”
Alexander-Arnold said it had been “very emotional and heartwarming to see the footballing world come together to show their love and support for [Jota], his brother and their family”.
“I’ve been around him, his brother, his family, his amazing wife, his amazing parents and his amazing children. It’s truly, truly heartbreaking to wake up to news like that,” added the England international.
“It’s something you never expect.”
Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe was among the players who paid tribute to Jota on Saturday, with the France forward indicating number 20 after scoring an acrobatic late goal, in recognition of Jota’s Liverpool shirt number.
Frenchman Ousmane Dembele also paid a tribute to the Portuguese by copying his Fifa gaming celebration after sealing a 2-0 win for Paris St-Germain against Bayern Munich, which set up a last-four meeting with Real Madrid.
