Jota Silva recalls Sporting row: It ended in the worst possible way... | OneFootball

Jota Silva was very close to returning to Portugal last summer to strengthen Sporting, but the deal fell through by just one minute. In statements to The Athletic, the Portuguese international - who ended up going to Turkey to represent Besiktas - spoke about that moment, acknowledging that returning to his home country was “a good option” and admitting that it was “very hard” to realize that the transfer to Alvalade failed by such a small margin.

"I spoke with Nuno [Espírito Santo] and he helped me. It was never about the club or the place. Forest signed some players for my position and I think he knows me well... I like to play, I like to feel important, to contribute. I had the opportunity to return to my country, to fight for titles. It was a good option," he began to say.

"It felt several times like it was practically closed. But things were changing day by day. It ended in the worst possible way. Losing a transfer by one minute is very hard. Now I have no problems with Forest or Sporting… but I won't lie. It was difficult," emphasized Jota Silva.

"When I got the call saying the paperwork hadn't gone through in time… my world went ‘boom’. But the next day, I woke up at 8 a.m. and went to train. My teammates helped me. I stayed quiet and didn't speak because at that moment, when you speak with emotion, you can say things you regret," he concluded.

It should be remembered that after the failed agreement with Botafogo, Sporting - which has a verbal agreement with a club - advanced with a proposal of €4.5 million for the loan, with a purchase option of €15.5 million, accepted by Nottingham Forest already after 11:00 p.m. The exchange of documentation continued until around 11:45 p.m., and despite the club sending the papers to the League, the clock already read 12:01 a.m., which led to the rejection of the registration and the collapse of a transfer that was already recorded in FIFA's records.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.