Celtic winger Jota has revealed he never once feared his career was over during his 533-day injury nightmare, despite losing an entire season to an ACL problem and a subsequent operation.
The Portuguese attacker made his long-awaited return to action last weekend with a second-half cameo against Motherwell at Fir Park, before playing 45 minutes in Sunday's 7-1 victory over Hearts. Now, after 18 months of rehabilitation, the 27-year-old believes the ordeal has changed him for the better.
A Rollercoaster of Emotions
Jota described the comeback journey as a "rollercoaster of emotions," adding that he could talk for two weeks about everything that went through his head. He said: "It's like a rollercoaster of emotions. We could stay here for like two weeks for me to speak about everything that was going on in my head. Like, what can I say? I mean in the end, it's part of everyone's life, you know? Everyone struggles. The thing is that in our job, I just cannot be out there."
He continued: "But certainly other people, and I always try to see from this perspective, like they have worse problems. I always think there's someone in a worse position than you. So I'm just grateful to - and I think I'm privileged to - be in such a wonderful sport and to have all of these experiences. Today it shows that it matters, like all of the struggle. It matters because these moments are unique."
The Injury and Setbacks
Jota's troubles began in April 2025 when he suffered an ACL injury during Celtic's title-clinching victory over Dundee United at Tannadice. Initially expected to be sidelined for nine months, he suffered another blow when he required keyhole surgery at the start of the year, ruling him out for the remainder of last season.
With his comeback repeatedly delayed, speculation grew over whether the £8million star's career could be derailed. But Jota refused to consider that thought, saying: "Oh, come on. No, obviously this is my dream. It's my passion. I was always being fuelled by this. So there's moments where you reflect, there's moments where you feel like you're down and you cannot see any light, but that doesn't mean that you stop believing. You just need to find another way. And that's what I was trying to do all the time. And every case is different."
He added: "My situation is not the same situation as another player. But in the end, my aim was always like I want to come back fit. Whatever time I need to take, because I still have a long career in front of me and I'm still young. So there's no rush, let's do everything correctly and just trust the process."
Family Support and Personal Growth
Jota spent much of his rehabilitation in Lisbon, surrounded by family and friends, whose support he credits with guiding him through his darkest periods. He said: "Yeah, family. I think that's the foundation of everything. And having them day by day next to me and knowing that no matter what, they will always be there - like when I go home - I think it's the best feeling someone can have."
The injury also forced him to confront personal challenges, and he says he has now made peace with them. He added: "Yeah, definitely. I think I've met some demons and I've had some good talks with them. I think we developed a good relationship afterwards and we are all on the same table nowadays and we can laugh about everything that happened."
He concluded: "In the end, I think if you don't grow from a situation like this, it's because you didn't learn anything. So in my personal situation, I think I could step away, see different things from other perspectives and value some stuff that maybe I wasn't valuing before. And now it's good because I have a clear idea of what I want, what I am. I might have it before as well, but now it's like a bit clearer. So in the end, it's good that I had it because if I didn't have it, I wouldn't be in this position right now."
