Ex-Celtic winger Jota's state of play at Al-Ittihad has been addressed by manager Nuno Espirito Santo after reports he was removed from the squad registration.

It was claimed the former Parkhead favourite had been taken out of the Al-Ittihad squad for domestic fixtures due to a ruling on foreign players who could be registered.

The decision does not impact Jota's eligibility to play in the AFC Champions League and Club World Cup - but would keep him out of Saudi Pro League matches.

Discussing player roles across competitions, Santo said:  "Since the end of last season we have known that in each match we have foreign players in the AFC Champions League, and each match is different from the other.

"Each time we will choose the most suitable according to our study of the opponent."

However, Jota will not see game time in the immediate future with Santo revealing the player has suffered an injury setback.

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The Al-Ittihad boss admitted Jota picked up a knock against Al-Hilal but is improving - even if a timescale has not yet been set for his return to action.

Santo explained: "Jota left the Al Hilal match due to injuries, and is currently improving continuously.

"There is nothing serious. I will meet with the medical team to determine his readiness but a return date is unknown."

Jota has played just five times for Al-Ittihad since his £25m move from Celtic during the summer transfer window.

And in his appearances to date he has only accumulated 133 minutes of game time being largely utilised as a substitute for his new club.

Jota has scored once so far for Al-Ittihad in a 3-0 win over Al-Wehda after he replaced the injured French striker Karim Benzema.