A few eyebrows were raised when Liverpool splashed £41 million to bring Diogo Jota from Wolverhampton Wanderers to Anfield in 2020.
While some will have questioned whether the Portugal international could make the step up in class, the man himself has proven to be an excellent signing for the Premier League giants.
Jota Building on Last Season
It really did not take Jota long to earn the adoration for the Reds’ faithful following his move from Molineux to Merseyside in September 2020. The former Atletico Madrid attacker found the back of the net on his Premier League debut for his new employers in a 3-1 victory at Anfield against Arsenal. Jota has not really looked back since, and while injury did see him sidelined for a spell last season, his first campaign under manager Jurgen Klopp was an undoubted success.
It seems like Jota has picked up where he left off for the current campaign, in which Liverpool are among the favourites in the English Premier League odds from Betfair to win the title. With three goals in his first seven league appearances this season, Jota has been repaying the faith shown in him by Klopp.
There were some slight concerns regarding Jota’s fitness after the international break, with the forward returning to Liverpool early after a minor injury while with Portugal. Klopp has since confirmed Jota won’t miss any Premier League football due to the knock, which will come as a big relief to the German tactician and those backing the Reds to win the title this term.
Jota Breaks Up Established Trio
After forming such a successful trio, there won’t have been many players that could come into Liverpool and force their way into their star-studded front three. Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino had established themselves as one of the most feared attacking line-ups in the Premier League. However, Jota seems to have moved ahead of Brazil international Firmino in the pecking order at Anfield, such has been the Portuguese star’s level of performances for the Reds since his arrival. Now it appears Firmino’s future is uncertain at Anfield, and there has been talk of a potential move away from Anfield in either the January transfer window or next summer.
At six years younger than the 30-year-old Firmino, it does seem like Jota can have a long and successful future with the Premier League title-chasers. Jota adapted well to the speed and physicality of the English game following his move to Wolves from Atleti back in 2017. Whatever challenges are put in front of him, he seems to take them in his stride, and that has been the case with the move to Liverpool to play in the Champions League. Jota scored four goals in nine appearances in Europe last season, once again proving his quality at the highest level.
There appear to be no more doubts now over Jota’s talents and it looks like the playmaker could play a key role in Liverpool’s attempts to return to the top of the English game this season.
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