Jota transfer disaster explained as Celtic hero caught in Saudi 'fallout' as Steven Gerrard turns unlikely ally

Former Celtic star Jota has reportedly been involved in a "fallout" between teammates at Al Ittihad - which has sparked an exit from the Saudi side.

The winger left Glasgow's east end in £25m deal earlier this summer will almost certainly see his stint with the Saudi Pro League champions end almost immediately after the deal. The wide man has been reduced to a bit-part role this season with reports suggesting the Treble winner will be offloaded with Ittihad going all-out to tempt Mo Salah to leave Liverpool - despite the Anfield side and the Egyptian superstar's agent playing down a move to the Middle East.

Reports had initially suggested that Jota was set to be moved on either on loan or allowed to leave for free to allow Ittihad to meet the Pro League rules on the number of foreign players allowed in each squad. But a report from Saudi newspaper SABQ now claim that unrest behind the scenes has left to the Portuguese star being allowed to leave because he "can't get along with some teammates."

The report comes amid reports of a dressing room split within the Saudi champions after the likes of Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante and Thiago joined the club this summer. Ballon D'Or winner Benzema had reportedly taken issue with boss Nuno Espirito Santo.

But speaking after the win over Al-Riydah Nuno aimed to calm the situation while name-checking Jota. The former Wolves and Tottenham boss said: "We have a strong group, we are happy with all the players. Happy to have Karim and Karim is happy, you can see that on the pitch.

"He is enjoying playing for Ittihad. I understand where this is coming from, but we are a group very strong. All my players are important to me, even those on the bench, including Jota."

Jota has made three