Since rejoining Celtic in January, Jota has very quickly found his feet once again at Celtic Park.
“It’s like he’s never been away,” seems to be the common amongst the Celtic support.
Thriving on the Occasion
Jota is a consistently excellent player whenever he wears a Celtic jersey. However, looking back at his previous spell with us, he does seem to love dishing out a good skelping to one team in particular, our opponents this weekend.
Brendan Rodgers has managed Jota’s reassimilation into Celtic’s squad brilliantly. He continues to praise the player, whilst showing suitable restraint and reminding us that he’s still not at 100% match sharpness yet.
However, I think Sunday could be the day when the rejuvenation of Jota enters its final phase. It’s the perfect occasion for a big game player.
Flying Under the Radar
While Daizen Maeda’s superb form since fully switching to centre forward grabbed most of the headlines, Jota has just quietly been going about his business. Goals, assists and excellent link-up play have been the signature marks of his efforts since January.
It speaks volumes to how well Celtic have played in general lately, that the return of a player like Jota hasn’t drastically altered the way the team plays.
Jota brings greater efficiency and a more direct approach to our attack, but the framework for Celtic’s strategy and formation remains the same.
Knock on Effects
It’s no coincidence that the return of Jota has also inspired a surge in form for another of our wingers, Yang Hyun-Jun. Whilst the young Korean star’s girlfriend has taken most of the credit for putting a smile on his face and improving his play lately, there’s no denying that having Jota around makes players like Yang better.
Watching the confidence and finesse with which Jota moves the ball around and create chances can only encourage players like Yang to up their own game in response.
Getting Back on Track
Now, to Celtic fans like us, Jota has nothing left to prove. We know how good he is, and we know he’s going to be a massive player for us in the years ahead. However, he’s also coming off the back of two transfers that didn’t work out.
Saudi was just a bad move from the start, though no doubt Jota’s bank manager would disagree with that assessment.
Rennes however, spoke to deeper problems. Clearly Jota was an unhappy player, lacking confidence, and perhaps most important of all, missing the adulation and unconditional support of the Celtic fanbase.
Lessons Learned
It’s not Jota’s fault, but when you burst onto the scene at a club like Celtic so early in your career, there may be a sense of naivety. You might think it’ll always be this easy, that wherever you go, fans will back you like they do at Celtic.
We know that there’s no other group on Earth like the Celtic support. But Jota learned that lesson the hard way. Sadly, it seems Kyogo is currently undergoing a similar, remorseful realization.
Silencing the Critics
Ultimately though, for Jota himself, the only way to permanently expel the emotional demons of the past two years is to once again show, to a worldwide audience that he is the real deal. Sunday, against the Ibrox Revival Act, is the perfect platform to do that.
We, the Celtic support, know Jota is a world class player. Brendan Rodgers knows he’s a world class player. On Sunday night, when the dust settles, hopefully quite a few others around the world will know this too.
We’ve just gotta have faith!