Ex-Celtic star Aiden McGeady weighs in on Jota’s Saudi transfer and says he ‘probably didn’t have any loyalty’ to club
AIDEN MCGEADY's departure from Celtic in 2010 shares some similarities with current star Jota's impending exit.
Jota is on the verge of a stunning switch to the Saudi Pro League, with Al-Ittihad in talks with Celts as we speak.
Echoes of McGeady's transfer to Spartak Moscow abound. Both players were jetting off thousands of miles away, to leagues with plenty of cash to go around.
Both were arguably entering the prime of their careers at the age of 24 and they were fan favourites at Celtic Park.
However, McGeady had endured a strenuous relationship with previous boss Gordon Strachan before the tumultuous reign of Tony Mowbray. McGeady's final season in Glasgow saw the Hoops end up trophyless for the first time since 2003.
On the other hand, Ange Postecoglou never hid his admiration for Jota from the moment he walked in the door on loan, and you imagine Brendan Rodgers would have wanted the winger to remain one of the first names on the Hoops' team sheet.
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And Jota played a key role in sealing the Treble for Celtic last season, including scoring the third goal in the Scottish Cup final win over Inverness.
The Russian Premier League was also well-established back then, and indeed Russia as a footballing nation had enjoyed success on the international stage.
CSKA Moscow were regulars in European competition and won the UEFA Cup in 2005, while Zenit St Petersburg beat Rangers in the final of the same competition just two years prior to McGeady's move to Spartak.
That game took place weeks before the Russian national team went on to achieve third place at the Euros that summer.
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With that in mind, McGeady admits he is disappointed to see Jota jumping at the prospect of a move to the Gulf state.
By and large, the Saudi Pro League has so far only been able to tempt ageing stars to their cash-rich shores - though the names have been some of the biggest in world football.
Cristiano Ronaldo kicked things off earlier this year and has been followed by a number of 30-something players like N'Golo Kante and Karim Benzema.
Jota, at 24, would represent a departure from that.
McGeady reckons the Portuguese winger doesn't have any loyalty to Celtic however, and will focus on the eye-watering wage he could pull in rather than missing out on Champions League football or a move to the Premier League in a year's time if he stayed with the Premiership champions.
Speaking on BBC Sportsound, McGeady said: "There's two ways to look at it, Jota probably didn't have any real loyalty to Celtic did he?
"It's a short career and some people look at it like 'I'll make as much money as I can'.
"But in my mind I'd be thinking if you're that good, the money will come to you eventually.
"I think he's very young to be taking that step (to Saudi Arabia), it's the established players just now who are going across there.
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"I can't speak for Jota, he might be getting life-changing money and he'll be thinking 'I can't turn it down', and he probably can't.
"But I would've liked to see him stay at Celtic for another couple of years and then maybe try his lucky in the Premier League or somewhere else, and then that money that he's getting just now would eventually come back to him."
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