Celtic were crowned champions of Scotland for the fourth time in as many seasons when they beat Dundee United 5-0 at Tannadice Park at the end of last month.
The Hoops ran out 5-0 winners against the Tangerines away from Parkhead to clinch the title, thanks to two goals apiece from Adam Idah and Nicolas Kuhn after an own goal from Ryan Strain.
Brendan Rodgers has now won the league title in both of his seasons since returning to Glasgow in the summer of 2023 to replace Ange Postecoglou in the dugout at Celtic Park.
The Northern Irish head coach will be aiming to make it a hat-trick next season, but he will have to do it without one of his star players for a significant portion of that campaign.
Jota hobbled off in the win over Dundee United, and it has since been confirmed that he suffered cruciate ligament damage, which is set to keep him out of action for between six and nine months.
This means that the Portuguese dynamo, who joined from Rennes in January on a permanent deal, could miss a significant chunk of the start of the 2025/26 campaign.
Why losing Jota to injury is a big blow for Celtic
Losing Jota to a long-term knee injury is a big blow for Celtic because he is a top-quality forward who has proven, across two spells, that he can make a huge impact at the top end of the pitch in Scottish football.
The Hoops reportedly splashed £8m to sign the winger from Rennes in January, 18 months on from his £25m move to Al Ittihad from Parkhead, to bring him back for a second stint in Glasgow.
As you can see in the graphic above, Jota provided a consistent threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals for the Scottish giants in his first two seasons at the club under Postecoglou in the 2021/22 and 2022/23 campaigns before his big-money exit.
The 26-year-old talent scored four goals, created three ‘big chances’, and registered two assists in seven starts in the Scottish Premiership this season, prior to his injury.
Goals
0.63
Top 3.8%
Expected Goals
0.48
Top 5.8%
xG on target
0.67
Top 3.8%
Shots on target
1.42
Top 3.8%
Assists
0.32
Top 19.2%
Expected Assists
0.37
Top 7.7%
Chances created
1.89
Top 25%
As you can see in the table above, Jota ranks highly among his positional peers in the division as both a goalscorer and as a creative threat from the left wing, which illustrates just how impressive he has been since returning to Celtic.
These statistics, along with his form from his first two seasons at the club, speak to how much of a blow it is to lose him for up to nine months, because Rodgers has lost a fantastic talent who can score and create goals consistently.
Celtic, however, could land a perfect replacement for Jota in the upcoming summer transfer window by swooping for one of their reported targets.
Celtic's interest in £7m forward
The Daily Record recently reported that the Hoops had an interest in Sarpsborg forward Sondre Orjasaeter, and that they tried to sign him at the start of the year to bolster their options at the top end of the pitch.
It was also claimed that the Norwegian outfit value the winger at around £7m, but it remains to be seen whether or not the Bhoys are willing to splash that kind of cash on him this summer.
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Back in the January transfer window, 67HailHail reported that the Scottish giants made an offer of £4.4m to sign the impressive youngster, only for the bid to be turned down by Sarpsborg, who value him at £7m as aforementioned.
Celtic must react to the news of Jota’s long-term injury blow by reigniting their interest in Orjasaeter to bring him to Parkhead as a perfect replacement for the Portuguese winger in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Why Sondre Orjasaeter would be the perfect Jota replacement
Positionally, the 21-year-old talent could be an ideal signing to come in for Celtic because he is a right-footed forward who predominantly plays off the left flank, like Jota.
Similarly to the Hoops number seven, Orjasaeter is also a slim winger who uses his pace, agility, and technical ability to drive his team up the pitch by taking on opposition defenders.
The Sarpsborg star has averaged 2.3 completed dribbles per game in the Eliteserien in the 2025 campaign, and averaged 2.4 completed dribbles per match in the 2024 season.
No Celtic player, meanwhile, has completed more than 1.9 dribbles per match. This suggests that Orjasaeter could come in as the dribble king for Rodgers on the flanks, consistently taking on full-backs to create dangerous moments in the final third.
The £7m-rated Celtic target’s form in the Eliteserien – Norway’s top-flight – since the start of last year also suggests that he has the quality to make a big impact when he gets into those dangerous positions.
Appearances
28
4
Goals
5
0
Big chances missed
5
1
Big chances created
12
4
Key passes per game
1.9
1.8
Assists
5
1
Dribbles completed per game
2.4
2.3
As you can see in the table above, Orjasaeter has created 16 ‘big chances’ in his last 32 appearances in the league for his club, an average of one every other game.
Meanwhile, with 35 league games on the board for Celtic this season, Alistair Johnston (15) is the only player with more than 11 ‘big chances’ created for the Hoops this term.
This suggests that the Sarpsborg magician has the potential to be Celtic’s main man for creativity if he can carry that form over to Scottish football for Rodgers next season and beyond.
Therefore, Orjasaeter could be the perfect replacement for Jota for many reasons, including his position, his style of play, his dribbling skills, and his creativity, which is why the club must press ahead with a swoop for him in the summer transfer window.
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