Ex-Celtic boss Gordon Strachan slams Jota critics as HYPOCRITES – ‘I bet they’d do the same’
GORDON STRACHAN last night branded Jota’s critics HYPOCRITES.
The former Celtic boss leapt to the defence of the Portuguese ace after his £25million move to Al-Ittihad.
Ex-Hoops striker Chris Sutton led the criticism over Jota’s £200,000-per-week Saudi Arabia move — but Strach hit back.
He said: “It’s easy for people to question the player’s desire, but once that money is presented to you, it becomes hard to turn down. I bet the pundits who are criticising him would all do exactly the same thing if they were offered the chance.
“I would challenge anyone to turn down an offer of 15 times their wages.
“Every player in Britain now is sat by their phone waiting for the Saudi telephone code to flash up.
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“When that call comes in, players will start singing and dancing!
“You have to remember the player will have a family that he will want to look after. There is no doubt about it, that kind of backing can take care of anybody.
“Even if Jota were to join the club for a period of three years, then he can move on and do what he wants after that.
“I see absolutely no problem with any player making that decision.
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“Let’s not forget that Jota will be playing alongside the likes of Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante, which will be a real learning curve for him.
“I see no problem with it, and it’s also going to make Celtic a lot of money as well.”
Jota was a key part of Celts’ Treble-winning team last season, and the previous year’s Double, racking up an impressive 28 goals in 83 games.
But Strachan still reckons returning Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers will find a new hero.
Speaking to Genting Casino, he added: “When Celtic were going for Ten in a Row, everyone said they must keep Kris Ajer and Odsonne Edouard.
“The club went above and beyond to keep those players by giving them huge wages, and they didn’t win the league.
“These players will be remembered, but when Celtic were playing wonderful football last season, if you asked the fans about them, some of them would have said, ‘Who?’.
“There are always new heroes in football. Celtic will always find new ones.”
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