Celtic signing Jota on a permanent deal this summer would be 'great, great business' by the club, according to former Scotland manager Alex McLeish.
The Lowdown: Jota shines for Celtic
The 23-year-old traded Benfica for the Hoops on a temporary basis last year, in order to enjoy regular playing time away from the Portuguese giants.
Jota has scored nine goals and registered ten assists in the Scottish Premiership, playing his part in Ange Postecoglou's side sealing title glory in 2021/22.
The hope is that all parties agree that a permanent move to Parkhead makes sense in the summer, with the club working hard to get a deal done.
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The Latest: McLeish talks up signing
Speaking to Football Insider, McLeish admitted Jota would be a superb long-term signing Celtic:
"Bite their hand off. Celtic should bite their hand off because he’s been magnificent.
"Even though I’m a Rangers fan, you just look for a player like that to get on the ball. You think he can do really good things with it. With his contribution and scoring, he looks like he is ready to go to an even higher level.
"That would be a great, great business. It seems as though he’s happy, he says the right thing in his television interviews. You would think he would want to stay at Celtic. Maybe produce that level of football for the next couple of years. Hopefully, Rangers and Aberdeen keep him quiet.
"At first you thought: ‘Ah, he is just a fancy Dan,’ as he did tricks and stepovers, things like that. But no, he’s got a hell of a lot in his locker. He’ll have gained confidence over the year after the season he’s had with Celtic."
The Verdict: Sign him up, Hoops
The thought of Jota not playing for the Hoops next season is a grim one, with the Portuguese gem already making such a big impact at the club, being hailed as 'unbelievable' by Postecoglou.
Benfica are seemingly happy to let the winger leave for good, however, and the fact that he seems happy at Celtic certainly heightens the possibility of him staying put.
The lure of playing in the Champions League for the Hoops surely works in their favour, too, with failure to qualify for the competition something that could put off players of Jota's calibre.
In other news, Celtic have been linked with a move for one player this summer. Read more here.