From playing in front of 60,000 passionate Celtic fans to now playing in front of 5,400 at Al-Shabab, is Jota regretting his decision yet?
Eric Knott 
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I do not claim to know or understand how Felipe Jota is feeling after his current club Al-Ittihad decided to loan him out to fellow Saudi Pro League club Al-Shabab.
But I’d hazard a guess that he isn’t feeling good about it.
How could he be?
Yes, I’m sure that a salary of $10million per year will soften the blow somewhat.
What it will not soften, is the blow to the prospects of your burgeoning football career.
If Jota had any aspirations to play for the Portuguese national side, they faded substantially when he made the career choice to move to Saudi Arabia.
With him being loaned out to the club that finished 4th in the Saudi Pro League last season, his status as a prospect for Portugal will have plummeted further.
Effectively, it’s highly unlikely he will ever feature for his national side, as long as he continues to ply his trade in Saudi Arabia.
If he thought he was going to be living the dream in the Middle East, I would say he’s thinking again now.
Listen, Everybody knows this move wasn’t made for footballing reasons.
It was made simply because the Saudis gave him an offer that was too good to refuse.
However, if you told Jota a year ago, he would be plying his trade in some backwater league in front of 5,000 fans, he probably would have laughed at you.
It’s a far cry from 60,000 fans singing your name deliriously after scoring a wonderful goal against Alan McGregor.
He expressed his undying love for Celtic before he left, you have to wonder if he is lovesick now and regrets leaving all that he did behind.
Playing in front of 60,000 adoring fans influences you to do wonderful things in the game, I’m not so sure playing in front of 5000 Arabs will have quite the same effect.
I doubt they will be able to sing Jota on the wing, let alone have even heard of it.
Personally, I think it’s sad it’s ended up this way for the Portuguese player, his talents are wasted in a league like that.
Yes, his bank balance might look good, but when he walks out into the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in front of maybe just over 5,000 fans, you have to wonder if he’ll be thinking of his glory days at Celtic.
If he’ll be thinking of the passion and the noise at a packed Celtic Park and cracking in goals against the Ibrox side.
He wouldn’t be human if he didn’t.
The only superstars he’ll be playing alongside at Al-Shabab will be an ageing Ever Banega, he of Valencia and Argentina fame, and little known Brazilian defender Iago Santos.
Hardly awe inspiring is it?
At least if he was playing alongside Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kanté and Fabinho at Al-Ittihad, he might feel he was learning something.
I can’t see that being the case at Al-Shabab.
He must surely find it extremely underwhelming, to say the least.
He has to be questioning his decision at this point.
Obviously I have no insight into what he has or hasn’t been promised by his parent club, but I can say this much for sure, moving to Al-Shabab was definitely not something he anticipated.
Surely he will wake up and realise this will be of zero benefit to his career?
He knows he’s better than this and that there are places where his talents will be much better appreciated.
I can’t see him just accepting this.
Well, if he has any sense or ambition as a football player, he won’t accept it.
Could his love for Celtic see him back at Celtic Park?
I wonder if there was a clause in his contract stating he may be sent out on loan?
Obviously Celtic could never match his current wages.
Maybe, just maybe, Felipe Jota might realise there’s more to football than money.
Watch this space…..
Aodhán Ó Conchobhair 
Jesus man let it go, there not a one of us who wouldn’t have did what he did, the good thing about it is he’ll still be young enough to redirect his career.
Every fan at Celtic this season have been waiting for a marquee signing, sign him back ….Now
You make it sound like his career is over.
If he stays 1 season gets $10m
Comes back to Europe & picks up where he left off, he will be a very rich young man with a good 6/7 years to play at a top level.
At £10.million per year I don’t think it would bother him to much watching your bank account every month with £800000 coming in as he only went for the money can’t blame him
if he leaves after a year then his wages are not tax free and he will hae to pay most of his wages back ,he has to stay 3years to keep his money
You only have to be out of Portugal for 1 year to have your salary tax free.
Do you realise that Al-Ittihad provides weekly that 60 thousand plus top class stadium atmosphere and not only for the rangers games? Do you realise he is simply not good enough for the caliber at Al-Ittihad? You realise this backwater league team Al-Ittihad as you refer to or would beat every single team including celtic??
Mohammed, Celtic sell 60,000 season tickets every season. They have one of the highest average attendances in Europe, whether Rangers are playing at Celtic park or not. Al-Ittihad averages attendances of 40,000, still good, but nowhere near Celtic’s. Al-Shabab averages 5,400. That’s the point I’m making. I doubt he anticipated going there when he went to Saudi Arabia. Finally, if Al-Ittihad are so good, foreign imports aside, we should play each other sometime, then we’ll know for sure who the better side is.
To me it’s quite sad. The money available yes I get it but I thought being a provisional footballer was about showing your skills that u have dedicated your young life to in front of an arena of loving fans winning medals fans singing your name and getting well more than an average man wages was more important than selling yourself to the highest bidder. Then to be used by the club without hesitation and Sent elsewhere into oblivion. Lesson for future footballers unless your main aim is too make money. If so u didn’t really love the game in the first place so why bother because fans will just say total waste. Jota is now in the swamps of football but he’s rich.
Eric,
Players now a day treat playing football as a job not a sport. Like any walk of life they will go where the money is so you cant blame him as everyone would do the same thing.
I suppose that’s very true
It’s been all about money for a very long time why the hell do you think players from around the world arrive at Premier league clubs. Boasting about playing in front of 60,000 won’t pay your bills in retirement. Good luck to the boys and there families & please remember players have a very short career.
Spot on
I had the pleasure of playing golf with Billy McNeil a few times and I remember him telling me that his bonus for winning the European Cup was £500. He bought his wife a new Mini with the money. Can you imagine what he would be earning today!
Matt oriely will be the best midfielder for celtic this season. Last year I thought he’s OK this year I’m like what happened there. His ball control for the assist to turnbal was sublime. I thought that is going out then ping far post. He can ping passes and now he scores. I think Rodgers has installed belief and that’s what people need
As I said before in a post matt oriely will be celtics next big money seller quality there is no doubt. The more confidence he gets the better he plays only still 22 he glides