Jota stepped back onto the Celtic Park pitch on Sunday, coming on at half-time as Celtic cruised to a 7-1 win over Hearts.
For the 27-year-old, it marked a significant moment after 18 months of physical and mental struggles.
His ordeal began in April 2025 at Tannadice, where he suffered cruciate ligament damage just as Celtic secured the title. But his road back had already been complicated by difficult spells at Rennes and Al Ittihad, where foreign-player quotas left him unable to play.
The long spell on the sidelines also took its toll mentally. Jota has spoken openly about wrestling with his “demons” and experiencing some very dark moments when he struggled to see a way forward. Looking back now, though, he sees those experiences as part of a process of growth. He says he has learned to live with those inner demons to the point where he can now look back and even laugh.
His return to first-team football began last weekend, when he featured in a 2-0 win over Motherwell. The winger is still being eased back into action, however, and has not been included in Celtic’s Europa League squad for the upcoming meeting with Celta Vigo in Glasgow.