Time flies when you are having fun. When you start questioning your own purpose in life, all money in the world cannot prevent the days from feeling like weeks, the weeks feel months.
Back in the East End of Glasgow yesterday, Jota voluntarily testified due to the fact that the incalculable riches of the Pro Saudi League are not everything in life.
Looking out the upper floor window in the Celtic park to the wet winter night, the Portuguese sounded like a man who had just released.
“The last year and a half, he felt like 10 years,” he said frankly.
A little over two years ago, the end had been part of his country's provisional team for the World Cup in Qatar.
While that dream did not materialize, the compensation came through a transfer of £ 25 million to Al-Titihad six months later.
A prodigious talent that had emerged from the Benfica Academy before shining in Celtic, the expectation was that the extreme would go to the defenders in a league with a surplus of wealth but still a quality deficit.
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What developed was disconcerting. Despite having his compatriot Nuno Espírito Santo initially the helm, Jota did not have an appreciable impact.
A league rule that prohibits more than eight foreigners per team was designed to prevent the major jewelry from Europe from squeezing the local talents of Europe in search of a last day of payment.
The exclusion of young and expensive imports as a jota was never the plan, but this is how it developed. So what happened?
“I think decisions happened and life happened,” said the 25 -year -old. 'And then I had to deal with life and overcome situations.
'Many things you can't control happen and then you have to deal with that.
'I don't want to be the guy who will individualize someone or something. I think that is not fair.
'I think it was like what happened many circumstances that conditioned my situation.
'Obviously, I wanted things to be different and they weren't, but life is. And the way I see myself throughout this moment is the way I get out of it, you know?
'My last 18 months were much more mentally challenging than anything else. I have discovered in a way I didn't know.
'That is the beautiful thing about life because we need to get into circumstances in which we do not feel comfortable.
'So many people in the world do not take risks because they feel insecure of what awaits them on the other side.
'I am proud of the elections that I have taken and I am proud of the way I left certain circumstances. I'm always going to do that.
Do not regret the path you chose. That does not mean that the experience will not mark it emotionally.
After being the star turn in Celtic, he quickly met the strange man with only 16 appearances in the league in a season. That inactivity left him feeling isolated and gradually longing for an exit.
“I can't speak on behalf of other players because they are all different,” he added.
'But before money, and people might not believe this, but I have to say what is true for me, football is always the first and I am obsessed with the game, I love the game, I breathe and live for the game.
'Obviously, the financial situation is completely different and we cannot get out of it.
'The players are taking that as something really important and I think everyone would think in the same way.
'Then it is the way you deal with circumstances. Obviously, for me, it was really painful because I wanted to succeed, I wanted to play.
'But obviously many things happened that did not allow it and is how it is. I need to deal with that and continue.
'Obviously, it is completely different when you play two, three times a week and then stop playing.
'But that was due to regulations, you know, bureaucratic things. That was a decision made and then I had to deal with that.
'It's hard when you're training and you can't play because you are not on the championship list. Then, obviously, that was a difficult time for me and other things happened in the middle.
It was not without his compensation. He told Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante as teammates.
“You can see what it is to play with Ballon D'Or, with World Cup winners, winners of the Champions League,” he recalled. “I mean, that's what you dream, right?
'I enjoyed knowing the details, the way they would move, they would do things, just drinking from their wisdom and the way they saw football.
'They have been on the top of football, they have conquered everything, you know? And when you have the opportunity to meet these people, you can see another perspective.
There was also comfort in some of the opponents he found. The most memorable arrived in the colors of Al Nassr, the best player that Portugal has produced.
“I played against Ronaldo, which was a dream of mine,” Jota recalled.
'I was my greatest idol when I was younger. I think that's something I will always remember. That was a proud moment.
'We chat before the game, only casual things. However, it was great.
However, when the end came, it didn't come too soon. Rennes offered an escape route in the summer, but his six months there only brought nine appearances in the league, prolonging the feeling that he was caught in a routine.
Rodgers brought Jota the same day that Kyogo's moving from the club was confirmed
Jota left Celtic's WhatsApp group at the time he left the country. However, ties, both personal and emotional, remained strong.
“I was in touch with many Celtic boys and even sometimes it was a joke like, hey, why don't you come back?” said.
After having passed Brendan Rodgers likes ships at night in 2023, he is now enjoying the possibility of working with the manager.
The Irish of the North has already managed to take advantage of his success of his first spell in Glasgow. Once it is up to date, the end plans to do the same.
“As long as there is commitment, ambition, talent, hard work and consistency, I think things will happen naturally, in the same way it happened two years ago,” he said.
'We do not press. We put responsibility for ourselves, which for me is two different things.