Jota has been left in football limbo after it was revealed a loan move to Steven Gerrard's Al-Ettifaq collapsed at the last minute because of red tape.

The former Celtic ace was left out of new club Al-Ittihad's list of players for the league because of a limit to the amount of foreign players in their squad.

It's the latest setback for the Portuguese winger, who has had a nightmare start to his career in Saudi Arabia following his incredible £25 million move from Celtic in the summer.

But he was offered a late lifeline this week by former Rangers boss Gerrard's new club, with the Saudi transfer windown closing on Thursday.

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However, it's been reported that both clubs left it too late for the deal to be registered with an agreement reached between both teams and the player just 30 minutes before the deadline.

The paperwork and red tape couldn't be processed in time leaving Jota in limbo for now.

Jota's loan move would have seen Al-Ettifaq cover his wages and he would have linked up with Scotland defender Jack Hendry, ex-Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and former Everton star Demarai Gray.

But he now faces an uncertain future after playing just 133 minutes for Al-Ittihad this season.