Celtic struck gold by selling a star whose value has plummeted by £18m
da apostebet： The summer transfer window officially slammed shut for business on Friday night and Celtic ended it with only one major sale from their first-team squad.
da 888casino： Central midfielder Matt O'Riley departed from Parkhead after a return of 18 goals and 13 assists in 37 appearances in the Scottish Premiership last season.
Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion swooped in to sign the Denmark international for a Scottish record transfer fee of more than £25m.
This comes after the Premiership champions had equalled the record sale when they cashed in on one of their star players in the previous summer window.
How much Celtic sold Jota for
Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad swooped in to sign Portuguese wizard Jota from the Hoops for a reported fee of £25m, which was the joint-most expensive sale in Scotland's history at the time.
The impressive winger had only joined Celtic on a permanent basis from Benfica in the summer of 2022, after his return of ten goals and ten assists in 29 Premiership matches during his loan spell in the 2021/22 campaign.
22/23 Premiership
Jota
Appearances
33
Goals
11
Assists
11
Big chances created
13
Key passes per game
1.9
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Jota followed up on his impressive loan stint in Glasgow with an even better return in front of goal in his second season at Parkhead.
The 25-year-old star, who Benfica youth coach Joao Tralhao claimed has "star quality", racked up 21 goals and 21 assists in just two league seasons with the Bhoys, which convinced Al Ittihad to splash £25m on him last summer.
Whilst it may have been seen as a blow at the time, due to his contributions on the pitch, Celtic struck gold by selling Jota as his value has plummeted over the past 12 months.
Jota's current market value
The right-footed attacker completed a move to Ligue 1 side Rennes at the end of the summer transfer window after a difficult year in Saudi Arabia.
Fabrizio Romano reported that the French outfit agreed a fee of around €8m (£7m) and that is a staggering fall from the £25m he went for last year, with his value plummeting by a staggering £18m.
The former Celtic star only played 25 games in his year at Al Ittihad, producing five goals and one assist, and made just 16 appearances in the Pro League.
Jota failed to force his way into the team on a regular basis and, within 12 months, the Saudi Arabian side decided to take a huge hit on him by selling the forward to Rennes for £18m less than what they paid the Bhoys for him.
This shows that the Scottish giants hit the jackpot when they negotiated a £25m deal with the Pro League side ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, as they cashed in on him at his peak value and have now watched on as he has struggled elsewhere.
100% duels won: Celtic star just made himself undroppable after Old Firm
The Hoops enforcer enjoyed a fantastic afternoon in the Old Firm clash on Sunday.
1 ByDan EmerySep 2, 2024
Meanwhile, Celtic won the Premiership title again and secured the SFA Cup, which shows that the team's performance on the pitch was not hugely affected by his exit.
