Jota admits Celtic are taking a careful approach with his return as he works towards his first start after a long spell out.

The Portuguese winger made his Celtic Park comeback in Sunday’s 7-1 win over Hearts, coming on at half-time as Martin O’Neill’s side ran riot.

For the full picture on who is fit, see the latest Celtic injury updates.

Jota looked bright after coming on, with a few flashes of the sharp feet and confidence that made him such a favourite during his first spell at the club.

But for all the excitement around his return, the winger knows Celtic cannot rush the next step.

Asked after the match whether he is far away from making his first start, Jota said: (Celtic FC YouTube), “Well, I don’t know.

“There are obviously metrics and processes to it, and those things also belong to the decision, to the manager.

“We need to be clever with my situation, obviously, because I stopped for a lot of time and we don’t want to make any mistakes.

“So I think we’re in a comfortable situation where everyone realises what needs to be done for me to grow up and to feel better and healthier.

“So, yeah, just trusting the process.”

He is not in the Europa League squad, with the winger left out due to his injury situation when the list was submitted, so Thursday night’s Celta Vigo match will not be his next.

That means his return will continue to be built through domestic football for now, with O’Neill and the medical staff able to control his minutes rather than rushing him into a packed European schedule.

The reception he received against Hearts showed how much supporters want him back properly, but Jota’s own comments make it clear that patience is still needed.

He added: “I’m not thinking too much forward. I just want to do the day-to-day thing and I think that’s the way to go.”

Celtic need Jota back for more than one cameo. The next challenge is getting him fit enough to influence games from the start without undoing the work that has taken him this far.