Jota regrets leaving Celtic as new manager makes decision

One major problem Celtic faced in the summer was the exit of Jota. The Portuguese winger had been a key player for the Hoops for the previous two seasons and was arguably the club’s most creative outlet. As a result, they needed to find a replacement for him, as he departed for Al-Ittihad in a £25 million exit.

Things have not quite gone as Jota would have envisioned though. He has barely played for Al-Ittihad since joining the club this summer.

He was pretty much completely out of Nuno Espirito Santo’s plans. While the Portuguese manager has been shown the exit door since then and is set to be replaced by Marcelo Gallardo, there is another update on Jota’s future.

As reported by So3ody Sports (via Daily Record), Jota “regrets” leaving Celtic and European football and is pushing for a return. Gallardo will not stand in the way of any decision from the Al-Ittihad chiefs on his future.

Jota regrets leaving Celtic as new manager makes decision

If Jota continues to struggle for playing time, one would expect him to leave as soon as possible. Whether that be on a loan deal or on a permanent basis remains to be seen.

Jota should still have quite a bit of interest in him, if he did end up making the return to Europe in the near future. He was excellent during his time at Celtic, proving his quality in Scotland as well as the European level. Now, let’s see what the future holds for him and where he ends up.

Could a possible return to Celtic be on the cards? Luis Palma has proven to be an excellent option. Daizen Maeda and Liel Abada are both out injured for the foreseeable future though. Yang Hyun-jun has potential but does not seem ready to be a regular starter. Marco Tilio has yet to play a single minute since arriving.