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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Ewan Paton

Inside situation 'dominated by tension' at Jota's Saudi club

Jota's sensational move from Celtic to Saudi appears to have turned sour.

The Portuguese winger swapped Glasgow for the Middle East in July as the Hoops pocketed a hefty £25million for his services.

Al-Ittihad was his destination, as the Saudi Pro League side swooped from nowhere to cause somewhat of a surprise with the signing earlier this summer. It was said that Jota would earn a whopping £198,000 per week.

The 24-year-old joined the likes of Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante at the club, with Liverpool midfielder Fabinho eventually signing too.

However, reports from the Middle East claim that the current situation at Al-Ittihad is turning into somewhat of a heated 'internal crisis'.

Over the weekend it was widely reported that Jota could well be set to leave after only two appearances.

It comes as the Saudi side looks to ease the ill-feeling around the club which is ongoing. The tension which is 'dominating' the club is said to revolve around the new recruits.

Pro League clubs must only have eight players per squad from overseas, hence the reason's Jota position is under threat. So, Al-Ittihad need to create space within its non-homegrown player ranks.

Some reports claim that they would like to do so in order to sign Liverpool hero Mohamed Salah.

Jota could be one of the overseas players sacrificed as a result, with an internal loan to fellow Saudi side Al-Shabab the most likely outcome. Marcelo Grohe and Tariq Hamed are also on the periphery of the squad.

Spanish media outlet Marca claims that the signing of Jota sparked 'dissatisfaction between fans and leaders' due to the arrival of a player 'without a star sign'.

It comes as Celtic were named as the favourites to sign Jota.

Odds compiled by Gambling.com have Celtic as the frontrunners for a shock transfer return for the winger.

Everton and Ange Postecoglou's Spurs are also among the favourites as potential locations for the ex-Parkhead star. 

Celtic 6/4

Everton 2/1

Tottenham 2/1

Crystal Palace 4/1

Wolves 9/2

Manchester United 25/1

Fulham 8/1

Any Portuguese Club 10/1

Leeds 14/1

Any MLS Club 20/1

Rangers 33/1

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