Jota has returned to Celtic in an £8m deal – simply 18 months after leaving the Scottish champions for £25m.
The Portuguese winger arrives from Rennes and has signed a five-and-a-half-year deal at Parkhead, topic to worldwide clearance, which is able to see him stay on the membership till June 2030.
In 2023, Jota swapped Celtic for a big-money transfer to Saudi facet Al Ittihad however was neglected of the membership’s Professional League squad and located himself on the fringes of the beginning XI for Asian Champions League matches.
He then moved to Rennes final summer time, however the appointment of recent supervisor Jorge Sampaoli left the participant in search of one other transfer – and he has his want after returning to Celtic.
Jota initially moved to Parkhead on mortgage from Benfica in 2021, earlier than being signed completely on a five-year deal the next season.
The previous Benfica participant scored 28 targets and offered 26 assists in 83 appearances, plus gained 5 main honours with the Parkhead membership.
‘It simply feels proper’
Jota talking to the media for the primary time since returning to the membership:
“Once I really had the time to think on it and understand that this was the best step for my career at this moment, I felt like, ‘okay, let’s go for it once again’ and it just feels right.
“It is clearly been a yr and a half with some difficulties, largely contained in the pitch the place I did not have a number of alternatives to play and clearly bodily it is not my finest second, however that may come rapidly with minutes, recreation time, trainings and I simply cannot watch for it.
“I’m just getting to know some of the lads, I think only nine players remain since the last time but definitely there’s a lot of talent, there’s room for improvement and under the orders of Brendan, I think there’s a good environment to develop and to win stuff.
“I’ve realized a number of stuff, I’ve recognized myself in numerous ways in which I did not know and I believe that is all positives in the long run of the day as a result of I am far more mature. I’ve a unique imaginative and prescient from what I would like and what I wish to obtain.
“I’m very aware of myself, so in the end that’s what I take from it.”
Rodgers: Jota can develop Celtic legacy
Celtic supervisor Brendan Rodgers is trying ahead to lastly working with the winger:
“An absolutely incredible addition to our squad, given what he’s done here before and his qualities.
“He was one participant that once I was coming again the primary time, I used to be actually, actually trying ahead to working with. I would seen him play for Celtic, after all, and seen the affect that he made by way of creating targets, scoring targets.
“Nearly earlier than I arrived, it was very clear that he was gone. That was disappointing.
“I’ve spoken to him at length. The challenge always is, and I know through first-hand experience, is that when you’ve created a legacy, lots of people will tell you to come back and maybe for that to be dented in any way.
“My feeling and recommendation to him was, come again and develop that legacy to be even higher.
“If you’re not happy in your work where you are or how it’s going for you, you know that this is a place where you will improve, you will develop.
“He is at a unique second in his life now as nicely, though he is been away just a few years. I believe that he’ll come again with an actual motivation. He is bought an undoubted high quality.”