Fans BOO Jota removal as Celtic hero forces Nuno into retreat mode from raging Al Ittihad punters
Al-Ittihad fans booed boss Nuno Espirito Santo as he decided to substitute forgotten winger Jota on his return to action.
The former Celtic star made his first competitive appearance since since September 1 having been left out of Ittihad's Saudi Pro League squad - with only eight foreign players allowed in each group for domestic league matches. However, the Portuguese star was able to escape cold storage for the AFC Champions League clash with Iraqi outfit Al-Wahda on Monday night. The 24-year-old impressed the home support in Saudi but was hooked by the former Tottenham and Wolves boss before Abderrazak Hamdallah netted an injury-time winner for Ittihad.
And the furious fans let their manager know of their disapproval over the Jota call as the boos rang out when Faisal Al-Ghamdi replaced the for ex-Hoops hero after 72 minutes. Boss Nuno was quizzed on the decision to freeze Jota out of his squad for the league - and declared he was concentrating on ramping up the fitness of the attacker. He said: "Jota went through a period when he was injured.
"We were able to play him in a friendly match against Al-Wahda, and that involved competition similar to the official match. Friendly matches are different. Jota performed well tonight."
He was also asked about the fans reaction to his substitution, but shrugged off the criticism. Nuno responded: "We make substitutions according to our feelings and what we see. Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we do not. Sometimes the audience understands that and sometimes not, so we see some disapproval, but we do our work according to what we see."