Celtic boss explains why Jota was subbed off at half-time

Celtic locked horns with St Johnstone in a nervy Premiership affair on Saturday afternoon away in Perth. The Hoops went into the game on the back of a 3-1 defeat at the hands of RB Leipzig in midweek’s Champions League clash. Also, they had won just once over the previous five games. So Ange Postecoglou’s side knew that they needed a win to get some momentum back on their side and also to keep the Rangers away.

As the match kicked off, anticipation turned into anxiety for both sets of fans. The decisive moment for the Hoops came in the 42nd minute of the game as Andrew Considine put the ball into the back of his own net to hand Celtic a valuable lead.

Despite dominating the ball possession, Celtic could not extend their lead. And as they say, there is no other scoreline as dangerous as having a one-goal lead. The Hoops felt the impact in the 93rd minute of the match, with Alex Mitchell notching up the equaliser for the home side.

However, the contest was far from over. Just before the final whistle, in the 95th minute of the game, Giorgos Giakoumakis scored the winner to send the fans into a frenzy and show why Celtic are champions.

Celtic boss explained why he subbed off Jota at half-time

Another talking point of the game was the substitution of Jota at half-time, as Daizen Maeda was brought on in his place. Fortunately, it was nothing serious.

As reported by Glasgow Times, Postecoglou told Sky Sports about his decision to sub off Jota at the break:

"“Yeah, it was just a bit of fatigue.“The plan wasn’t to play him for too long today as he’s played a lot of football so I don’t think there’s any concern there.”"

Naturally, Celtic were fans were left worried when they did not see Jota take to the pitch after the break, especially with the number of injuries that the Hoops have endured in recent times. Thus, it is fortunate that it was just a matter of fatigue and thankfully, it did not cost the club any points.