An emotional Jota cries and hails ‘amazing feeling’ as he marks Celtic return with late goal at Motherwell
IT was always going to be an emotional afternoon for Jota as he pulled on a Celtic shirt for the first time in 20 months.
The winger had to settle for a place among the subs at Fir Park after completing his £8milion return from Rennes in midweek.
The former Benfica ace, though, was summoned from the bench to replace Nicolas Kuhn after 63 minutes with Celtic leading Motherwell 2-1.
And he went on to make his mark in injury time as he got on the end of Daizen Maeda’s cross to end any doubts about the outcome.
It was his first goal in Celtic colours since scoring in the Scottish Cup final win over Inverness Caley Thistle in June 2023.
And he marked it in typical fashion by standing motionless and raising a clenched fist in the air in front of the jubilant away support.
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Then came the emotions as the 25-year-old thumped the Celtic badge before being congratulated by his team-mates.
And as he made his way back into the Celtic half for the restart, the occasion clearly got the better of him as he burst into tears of joy as the Hoops fans sang about “Jota on the wing”.
The player has not enjoyed the best of times since leaving Parkhead for £25million in the summer of 2023.
His switch to Saudi turned into a disaster when he was frozen out of the picture at Al-Ittihad for months.
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And when he ended that miserable spell and moved back to Europe at the start of this season, it didn’t get much better with Rennes struggling and Jota barely playing.
Little wonder, then, that the emotions poured out as he made a fairytale return in a Celtic shirt to ensure Brendan Rodgers’ side remain 10 points clear of Rangers at the top with a game in hand.
And he led from the front as the players celebrated in front of the away end at full-time.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Jota said: “It was amazing, an amazing feeling.
“I couldn’t have written it better.
“It was a happy moment for me to come back, for the team to deliver as well and to celebrate again with these amazing fans as they really deserve it.
“It’s been some difficult moments, ups and down, and I just feel like I’m back home.
“I couldn’t be happier than this.”
And the Celtic supporters were loving seeing their old favourite straight back into his stride.
One wrote: “Tears on his way back to the half way line.
“I bet at points in the last 18 months he never thought he'd hear that roar, his name sang loudly...tears of happiness, the nightmare is over, you are back in paradise, Jota!”
Another added: “My man is absolutely overjoyed to be back home.”
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While a third chimed in: “Nothing better than seeing a player smile when he scores, looks quite emotional, welcome home!”
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