Jota would just love another poster-Bhoy moment like this one
HE was already the poster boy of the team. By striking an iconic pose on the back of scoring against Rangers that day in september, Jota’s image was destined to adorn canvas, crockery and the forearms of many of the devotees who’d shared in his moment of triumph.
The sequence of events is now seared into his mind. with the visitors seemingly caught in a trance, Callum McGregor’s quick free-kick finds Matt O’Riley. The Portuguese takes a searching pass with his left-foot to take him away from goal. The angle is closing but the execution over the keeper with his right foot is perfect. Two-nil Celtic, going on four.
For the delirious home supporters, the aesthetic beauty of the goal was matched by the celebration. Head bowed, fist-clenched, right arm raised to the sky as the player stopped on the touchline, the assumption made at the time was that this was a carefully choreographed routine — one for the cameras and the cash registers.
‘No, it was something in the moment,’ the winger insisted. ‘Really. I’m serious.’
The merchandise department at Celtic Park can only hope for further instances of such spontaneity in the coming year.
Rarely has a single celebration set the tills ringing like that one. The T-shirt sales have been the least of it.
‘I’m just grateful for that as it was a really good moment for me,’ he added. ‘If people can look back on that moment and it brings them a bit of happiness, then I’m happy as well. It’s all about the happiness.’
He’s now brought smiles to faces by hitting the net on 20 occasions in a Celtic jersey. Two of those have come against Rangers. The last time he scored, it was with a stunning free-kick to give his side some consolation in the Bernabeu in November.
No souvenirs were flogged on the back of his first for the club in a League Cup tie against Raith Rovers. Yet, he’s adamant it remains as precious as any.
‘My favourite goal is always the last one and the next one, if you know what I mean,’ he added. ‘all of them are special in some way, of course. Maybe some of them are more important than other ones because some can give you a victory in the last moment or whatever.
‘The Bernabeu was certainly a special one and the ones at Celtic Park against Rangers were also special because it’s a big game. But every goal is important.’
The good news for Rangers today is that Jota (below) hasn’t looked like getting one since the Premiership resumed after the world Cup. The bad news is that he believes he’s about to rediscover his optimum level.
substituted after becoming frustrated against aberdeen and Livingston, he was only introduced from the bench against st Johnstone and Hibs.
Now over the bug that prevented him from starting at Easter Road, he accepts there is more to come from him.
‘Yes, definitely,’ he said. ‘Every player always has something more to offer. You can never be satisfied with the things you do because I have motivation and an ambition to be a better player and that’s what I’m going to try to do.
‘I work every day to be the best version of myself. I know what I do and what I don’t do. so, I just work on the things I need to so I can be a better player.’
The presence of others helps in this regard. Daizen Maeda, Liel abada and James Forrest all featured in Leith.
If one of ange Postecoglou’s wingers aren’t quite at it these days, it seems the chances are that another will be. ‘when you play for Celtic, you need to be ready for competition,’ said Jota. ‘That’s healthy because this is a big club and it has big expectations. we want the best players as well, so we need to fight for our spots. ‘It helps everyone because we are a whole. we want to fight for a lot of things, so we need everyone at their full capacity so we can win.’ The upshot is that 13 straight wins have been pieced together across the domestic competitions since st Mirren inflicted that solitary league loss in september. ‘I guess the numbers and statistics don’t lie,’ added the Portuguese. ‘I know we are in good form but we just need to keep on doing our stuff.’ Twelve months ago, Celtic were the hunters in the league race. They’d ended the calendar year six points behind Rangers but would only drop six more as they came up the rails to claim the most unlikely title of recent years. Rangers unquestionably have a bigger task on their hands now. Not only is the gap wider, Celtic look a more settled and accomplished outfit than at any time in Postecoglou’s reign. ‘Yes, definitely,’ said Jota. ‘Because we have had the time to prepare to be better and (do what) the manager wants us to do.’ anyone asking Postecoglou about points differentials should know by now that they are wasting their breath. Yet the fact is that Celtic’s nine-point lead going into today’s game will affect the dynamic.
a win for the visitors and the engraver can get to work. a draw will also do them nicely. Rangers simply have to win to stand any chance of pegging their rivals back and will, accordingly, have to hit the gamble button.
‘we don’t stick to their ideas. we stick to our ideas,’ Jota insisted.
The two derbies at Ibrox last season illustrated where the respective clubs were around those times.
Rangers’ single-goal victory in late august came against a Celtic team that was very much a work in progress and would soon lose the likes of Odsonne Edouard and Ryan Christie.
By the time the sides clashed again in april, Postecoglou’s new-look side had grown to the point where even the concession of an early aaron Ramsey goal would not deny them a seasondefining victory.
Michael Beale’s return to Ibrox gives today’s affair a new feel even if the Rangers manager must select a side from largely the same faces.
‘These are the games you want to play in,’ said Jota. ‘These are the games you always dreamed of. we’re all very excited about playing it.’
They are, truthfully, rarely matches for the purist but drama and controversy invariably offset any deficiency in quality.
Moments of brilliance have frequently lit them up, with the accompanying imagery transcending generations. Celtic’s poster boy can attest to this.
‘If it comes, it will be in the moment but that’s not what I’m thinking,’ he replied when asked if he was planning a similar celebration in the event he scores today. ‘I’m only thinking of the victory of the team.’