Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed the special phone call he had with Jota over a return to the Hoops this month.
With rumours of a Jota-Celtic reunion breaking after Celtic’s Champions League knockout qualification on Wednesday night, it was at the time taken with a pinch of salt by many Hoops supporters. But in the days since, it has become clear that a move back to Glasgow is set to happen.
Kyogo is set to move in the other direction to Rennes in Ligue 1. However, the move is not a swap deal and instead has been a long time in the making, with Rodgers missing out on Jota’s previous spell at Celtic. Having joined the summer that the Portuguese winger departed for Al-Ittihad, it looked like they would never get to work together.
However, that is set to change, with Rodgers revealing just how excited he is to work with Jota, a player who has had a frustrating few years in Saudi Arabia and in France over the last six months.
When asked ‘On Jota, he’s been a hero at Celtic before. How confident are you that he can have the same impact?’
Rodgers said: (Celtic FC Youtube), “Yeah, I’m very confident. I think that there’s a possibility of him being able to come.
“He was one player that when I was coming back the first time, I was really, really looking forward to working with. I’d seen him play for Celtic, of course, and seen the impact that he made in terms of creating goals, scoring goals and that connection with the supporters. So, I was really, really looking forward to him and working with him. Then, virtually before I’d arrived, it was really agreed that he was gone. So, yeah, 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. But my feelings to him and advice to him was, to come back and grow that legacy to be even greater.
“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. And he’s at a different moment in his life now as well, even though he’s been away only a few years.
“So, yeah, I think that he’ll come back with a real motivation. He’s got quality, but still got things he can improve, to develop. But he’s still young and if the deal comes through. Then, I’ll be really excited to work with him.”
The thought of Jota under Rodgers is one that will surely excite Celtic supporters, given the way he has been able to improve the likes of Daizen Maeda, Alistair Johnston, and Matt O’Riley over the last 18 months. You wouldn’t bet against Jota going up a gear, just like the others were able to do under the Irishman.
For Jota, it is a chance to rebuild his career at a club and fanbase who appreciate him, with the big takeaway being that Rodgers himself was sad to see Jota depart when he had just rejoined in 2023. But that is now set to change, and to label him the one player he was most looking forward to working with shows exactly the plans he has for the Rennes winger when he signs in the coming days.
