LEAVING Scotland on Saturday after an enjoyable and well-earned summer break with his wife and young daughter, was a wrench for Ian Cathro.
But Cathro, who is now assistant manager at Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, has much to look forward to over in the Middle East in the coming months.
And he knows that Jota, who completed his record-equalling but contentious £25m transfer from Celtic to the Saudi champions last week, does as well.
The 36-year-old, who helped his long-time associate Nuno Espirito Santo steer “The Tigers” to the ninth Pro League title in their 95 year history in his debut season in charge, read and heard much the criticism that was aimed in the direction at the Portuguese winger when he was back in his homeland.
He is not interested in getting embroiled in a slanging match with the critics. Not with the AFC Champions League, Arab Club Champions Cup and FIFA Club World Cup all coming up in the 2023/24 campaign. Not with Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante and Jota to integrate into the Al-Ittihad squad.
But he certainly disagrees with those who claim that the former Benfica forward – who will reportedly receive £10m tax free a year, around £192,000 a week, in the Gulf state - has thrown his career away and scuppered his chances of developing further as a player by taking the petrodollar.
“I understand these opinions,” said Cathro. “It would be completely foolish not to say that I understand them.
“But I think the people who make these public comments are guys who haven’t had the phone call offering them those contracts. I think there is an element of that. It becomes a really, really easy thing to say.
“In the past year I have learned, with the experiences I have had, that we shouldn’t disrespect people’s love and passion for football in different places. Football isn’t owned by anyone. It is played all over the world and it is important that is respected.
“All of the other opinions? To be honest, I don’t want to be brought in to that. I understand the view, we all do obviously, the headlines are the headlines. But I think most people who try and make some noises are probably doing so because they haven’t had the call offering them that.
“I imagine if they got offered what they are referring to then they would probably shut up pretty quickly - and be looking for a pen!”
Having spent 12 months in Saudi Arabia now, the former Dundee United, Rio Ave, Valencia, Newcastle United, Hearts, Wolves and Spurs coach has seen first hand just how serious and passionate the country is about football.
Cathro has no doubts Jota will, as he has, revel in his new surroundings and grow both as a person and a player.
“He has already had a lot of challenges and performed well,” he said. “He is at a point where he is still a developing player. That is something that is really important – and is probably the most exciting part as we move forward and look to improve the team and develop the squad.
“We had a lot of success last season. We maybe sped up the process of what the club are looking to do. The doors that have been opened for the coming season, primarily the Asian Champions League and the Club World Cup, creates a set of new opportunities.
“We created these opportunities last season and have since been able to bring who we have been able to bring in to help the team and develop the squad. Put those two things together and you get and exciting situation for sure.”
French internationalists Benzema and Kante, who have joined Al-Ittihad from Real Madrid and Chelsea respectively, are both former Champions League winners.
Jota, meanwhile, featured for Celtic in the group stages of that competition last term and helped the Parkhead club to complete a world record eighth domestic treble.
Cathro, who has worked at the highest level in Scotland, Portugal, Spain and England in the past, knows they will not be disappointed by either the standard or intensity of Saudi Arabian football in the seasons ahead.
“I think they are going to love running out for the first home game at the King Abdullah Stadium,” he said. “I have to tell you, when you play your home games you could be anywhere in the world. I didn’t know the name of the stadium previously, but I now do.
“The atmosphere in our stadium compares to any I have been in. The passion the fans have is incredible. It is just like anything that we would refer to from our experiences closer to home. There is no difference.
“If we win, my morning coffees until the next game are all free. If we drop points, I need to pay for my morning coffee. That in itself gives you the picture that it is lived every minute of every day by the fans.”
Cathro certainly has had no regrets about joining Nuno at Al-Ittihad. He believes he is a better coach now than he was when he arrived because of the daily challenges which he has faced on and off the park.
“I would probably reflect on it now and say last season has been one of the best with respect to my own development,” he said.
“You are dealing with quite a mixed squad. You have got your foreign players, you have your local players, you have got different cultures coming together, there are a lot of aspects that need to be managed more delicately, more thoughtfully, to try and keep the correct balance each day so that you can arrive at each game as prepared and as competitive as possible.
“There are differences. That has been a really important experience for us as a staff. I think we adapted quickly and well. For me, we recognised there are some things we needed to accept and respect and find a different way of managing the group through.”
The arrival of household names like Benzema, Roberto Firmino, Jota, Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy, Ruben Neves, and Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia this year is a result of a strategy called “Saudi Vision 2030” which the government hopes will make the country less reliant on oil for income. Cathro can only see the game growing further in the years ahead.
“They have made it quite clear that they have got big plans,” he said. “ “I don’t anticipate there being any sort of slow down in the investment that they are making at the minute.
“There is investment around the clubs to try and develop academies and training grounds and, assuming they have got a handle on all of those things, then they can certainly make a lot of progress. I don’t think there is any question about that.”
