Jota's Injury Timeline Confirmed as Celtic Fears Come True

Celtic have quite a ways to go before they look to be a stronger roster, as they have seemingly shuffled things up ahead of the 2025-2026 season. While this was likely necessary for the long-term outlook of the club, they might be weaker now than they were a few months ago.

Thankfully, the team have a significant amount of talented players on the roster, most notably Daizen Maeda, whom they can build around over the course of the summer window.

With five additions being finalised so far, and multiple others in the pipeline, they could find their way back in the coming weeks.

Injuries have set the club back a bit more than anticipated, though, with Jota and Reo Hatate suffering pretty setbacks near the end of last season. While the Japanese midfielder has already taken part in pre-season, the timeline for Jota's injury is going to be quite long, according to a recent update from Brendan Rodgers.

What is the Latest Update on Jota's Injury Status and Timeline and When Will He Return For Celtic?

In a recent media appearance, Rodgers discussed Jota's injury and it now seems as though he will not be able to play in 2025 again. The quote reads as follows (transcribed by John McGinley of The Celtic Way):

"He's coming along really well. We sent him to Portugal to assess his fitness here and be with his family. And yes, the progress has come along really well."

"I think the first 12 weeks of that injury, it's important that you get to a point where you're able to straighten it. He can do that."

"He has been in the gym. He’s got a long, long way to go. It's going to be into next year."

The positive is that Jota is recovering, as his health and stability are the most crucial components to this entire process. Pushing too hard too early could be a problem, so hearing that these first few months have gone well is very good news.

Not coming back until 2026 will be the difficult part all around, as it will hold Jota away from the pitch that he so loves, and also will put the team in a difficult position early on this season. Hopefully his recovery goes well through and through, as he is a crucial element to the club, and will have a chance to play once again as next year rolls around.