Jota probably can’t play 90 minutes for Celtic yet. But then, nobody will ask him to.

Most reports on Jota have mentioned a couple of things we need to look at. Almost all of them suggest he’s badly short of fitness. Now, this might be true, or it might not be. But we’re not talking about a guy who’s played no football at all in 18 months, and we’re not talking about someone who hasn’t been present at training sessions or putting in time on the training pitch.

Last night on the podcast, we talked about Jota in some detail, including how his return to the club doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll see him in full flow this season. It’s entirely possible that Jota has been signed, at least in part, with the next campaign in mind. He’s a great signing—of course, everyone agrees on that—but questions about when he’ll be ready to play are valid.

However, the answer may not be as negative as some people think. Modern footballers, regardless of who they are or where they’re playing—or even where they’re not playing—are always fit. They never fall below a certain level because they simply can’t afford to. The issue with someone like Jota isn’t about basic fitness but match fitness, which is a different matter altogether. He’s not ready to play 90 minutes flat-out.

But here’s the thing: we’re not reinventing the wheel here. Celtic have signed Jota to be a high-impact squad player. What does that mean? It means someone who can start a game or come off the bench as a super-sub. He’s not a guaranteed starter—there are no guaranteed starters at this club, nor should there be. That’s the point. Jota is coming in to provide competition in our wide areas, where currently, it’s only Yang.

No one is asking him to play 90 minutes every week. No one expects that. He’s not been brought in for that job. The purpose of this signing is to provide cover for the two guys already doing that job and, initially at least, to contribute 20 or 30 minutes at a time.

If we were signing this guy to throw him straight into the team and have him play every week, it would be a travesty. That would be lunacy. Rest assured, because he’s not capable of doing that right now, it’s exactly why Rodgers won’t consider moving Maeda into the middle to play as a striker. Doing so would mean sacrificing him on the left and relying on someone not yet up to speed.

Rodgers isn’t going to do that. The whole point of this is to create competition for the two wide positions, not to put Jota out there permanently. One of the things I’ve always liked about Jota is his versatility; he’s just as comfortable on the right as he is on the left. That means he provides cover for both positions, not just one. His flexibility makes this an even better signing than I’d expected.

Yes, I understand the concerns. As I said, they’re valid. He hasn’t played regular first-team football in 18 months. But this isn’t a guy who’s been sitting in front of a computer, eating doughnuts, and writing blogs. (Yes, note to self: get out and exercise more.) These guys are athletes. They work hard to stay in shape. Even if he’s not up to running the length of the pitch for 90 minutes yet, that level of sharpness comes back much quicker than the average layperson realises.

If there are no underlying issues—injuries or, I don’t know, something like Nicolas Kuhn-style problems with his teeth—we should expect to see him ready to play regularly in a matter of weeks, not months. If he’s been following any sort of training regime at Rennes, he should be raring to go.

There will, of course, be an adjustment period—there always is when a player signs for a new club or returns to an old one. But honestly, I’m far more concerned about Tierney’s fitness over the rest of the season, should he sign, than I am about Jota’s. Time will tell on both counts. I hope we see Tierney sign, hit the ground running, and be a huge success. As for Jota, I have little doubt he’ll be fantastic.

I’m not impressed by those suggesting returns never work out. Sometimes they do, and dismissing that outright is just silly superstition. I don’t know why so many fans believe this stuff.

Jota is a superb squad signing, and that’s what he’s been brought in to be—a superlative addition to the bench who strengthens the overall team immeasurably. If we can now bring in the striker we need, we’ll be in very good shape.

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