Daizen Maeda may have been dealt a brutal put down for his ability on the ball by one of his country’s most famous players.
But Celtic team-mate Greg Taylor insists when it comes to qualities OFF it, the Hoops have one of the best in the world. Maeda’s non-stop work rate and pressing has seen him dubbed the ‘Duracell Bunny’ at Parkhead. And even though Taylor reckons the Japan ace likes to recharge his batteries during the week, he says his energy on matchday is vital to powering Celtic’s charge into the business end of a frenetic title race.
Maeda was the only member of the Japanese contingent at Parkhead to get the call for international duty this week and played a full 90 minutes as the Samurai Blue defeated North Korea 1-0 in Thursday’s World Cup qualifier. But he was hardly given the warmest of welcomes home when former Japan hero Marcus Tanaka called for him to be dumped and branded him “terrible with the ball”.
Taylor, though, insists there’s no way he’d ever be under-valued among his colleagues in the east end of Glasgow. He said: “Not within this building, and certainly not by me. I’m Daizen’s biggest fan and I’ll never under-appreciate him as a player.
“He’s a breath of fresh air, he works ever so hard for the team and is always willing to do that bit more. His pressing, I think he’s genuinely one of the best at pressing in the world. I think his presses and his numbers are right up there. In training I actually think he recharges the battery through the week at times!
“There’s a couple of days out there where you think Daizen’s just getting ready for the weekend, and sure enough, when the weekend comes he normally doesn’t stop. That’s a good way to be, he knows his body.”
Earlier in the season Maeda was clocked as the fourth quickest player in the entire Champions League after scurrying around at 35.6km/h. But there’s more than just being a pest to opposition defenders that sets the Hoops hassler apart.
A first hat-trick in Scotland as Livingston were dumped out the Scottish Cup a fortnight ago suggested he was hitting top form in front of goal at the right time of the season too. Whether that’s down to his new hairdo is anyone’s guess. But Taylor said: “He said he was growing it for his daughter, so that’s quite a nice touch and it’s worked for him, he’s notched a few goals since!
“He’s got many strengths and adding goals to his game will only improve him. Our relationship is really good, I think you can see that going back through the last few seasons, we work really well together.
“His strengths complement mine really well and it’s a relationship that’s been pretty strong through different circumstances. He’s been on the left, he’s been on the right, he’s been playing up front at times as has happened this season, but that’s part and parcel and it’s nice to have that relationship back.”
If Maeda is a key man for the Hoops launching into the final leg of the title race then Joe Hart is providing a solid platform at the back. The veteran goalkeeper has already revealed he will hang the gloves up in the summer.
And Taylor – who dubbed the 36-year-old one of England’s greatest ever keepers – is determined to ensure he goes out a champion. He said: “Harty has been a massive part of our success in the last few years. He’s great on the pitch and an amazing guy off it.
“We want to finish it the right way for him, But that is just one of many reasons. We want to give the supporters a trophy to celebrate and you also want to do it for yourself and your own personal pride.
“We also want to do it for the manager as you know the sacrifices he makes and the belief he has in us as a squad. But doing it for Joe is also one of them.
“Joe is the perfect professional. He’s always willing to put an arm round a player if he needs it and if someone needs a bit of firing up he is there as well.
“He really reads every situation well and carries himself like the top professional that he is. How humble he is after everything he has done in the game is unbelievable. He’s arguably one of England’s greatest goalkeepers, Man City’s as well, he’s just a real credit to himself.”
Hart has turned the clock back with a string of huge saves at key times. And Taylor said: “He’s been massive. Certainly since Christmas, it’s been picked up on some of the massive saves that Harty has made for us, it’s been vital in some of the games.
“I think that has been pretty consistent throughout his time here, he’s made big saves when he’s been needed and we’ll miss him of course when he goes.
“But he wants to go out when he’s feeling good, he doesn’t want to carry on any longer than he feels is necessary. As I said, and also he believes, he wants to try and finish the season right.”
Yet, amidst his numerous victories, Celtic stands out as a rare stumbling block in his otherwise illustrious career.
Having faced the Scottish giants twice in the 2016/17 Champions League group stages without a win, Guardiola finds Celtic alongside Wigan as the only two teams he has not managed to defeat in his managerial career.
The first encounter between Guardiola’s Manchester City and Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw. Notably, Celtic never trailed in the match. Moussa Dembele’s memorable performance, highlighted by an overhead kick, alongside a Kieran Tierney goal that deflected off Raheem Sterling, showcased Celtic’s capability to challenge top-tier opposition.
The subsequent match at the Etihad Stadium further cemented Celtic’s ability to stand toe-to-toe with Guardiola’s side, ending in a 1-1 draw. Patrick Roberts, on loan from Manchester City to Celtic, made an immediate impact by scoring early, only for his goal to be equalised minutes later.
As both teams prepare to meet again in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on July 23 during Celtic’s American pre-season tour, Guardiola will undoubtedly seek to secure his first victory over the Scottish club.
Celtic comfortably saw off St Johnstone at Parkhead yesterday, on a day when Brendan Rodgers’ men made a compelling case regarding their title-winning credentials.
Kyogo Furuhashi opened the scoring not long before the interval, heading home from an impressive Nicolas Kuhn centre, capitalising on a period of dominance during proceedings for the hosts.
Straight after the whistle sounded for the restart, Furuhashi returned the favour, sliding a low ball across the goalmouth that would’ve been impossible to miss. The latter subsequently claimed his first goal for the Bhoys.
Veteran winger James Forrest prolonged Celtic’s stranglehold over St Johnstone in the 68th minute, taking advantage of a sweeping pass from Matt O’Riley to rifle home a third.
Connor Smith provided a late response from the visitors; however, his mere consolation couldn’t take the shine off an imposing display from the Hoops.
Rodgers’ reigning Scottish Premiership champions recorded 74% possession and had 23 efforts on goal, ten of which were on target [BBC Sport].
Looking forward, a period of reflection during the international break will ensue before we return away to Livingston on Sunday, 31st March.
Celtic have several players who are gearing up for international duty over the coming weeks; meanwhile, there will also be a core of individuals who stay at Lennoxtown either to continue their recovery from injury or simply as a result of not being picked to represent their respective nation.
Rodgers is the man tasked with keeping his squad ticking over during the break, and he has revealed there are plans in place to ensure his group remain fit amid a spate of injuries within the camp.
Speaking post-match, the Hoops manager revealed that a behind-closed-doors bounce fixture has been organised to help maintain match-readiness levels.
He stated [Celtic FC YouTube]: “There will be a little bit of rest but there’s still work to be done, we’ll have a game behind closed doors to get one or two of our players up to speed.
Later on, Rodgers added on Cameron Carter-Vickers’ successful outing: “But really good news, seeing the likes of Cam in today and working well. All being well, all of the guys come back fit, and we can really attack this last part of the season.”
Undoubtedly, injuries have played a major part in the tale of this campaign, and any measures that can be put in place to ensure we have sufficient depth heading into the last portion of this term will be welcomed by supporters.
Hopefully, we can have as close to a clean bill of health as possible once the Scottish Premiership calendar resumes after the international break.
Celtic winger Nicolas Kuhn stood out in the Hoops’ dominative 3-1 win over St. Johnstone on Saturday, adding a goal and assist to his name.
The German wide man set up Kyogo Furuhashi for the opener just before half time with the vivacious striker returning the favour just after the break when he slid a rapid ball across goal for Kuhn to tap home from.
He came off with just under half an hour to go to a standing ovation and was later named the in-stadium Man of the Match.
Later on Saturday evening, the 24-year-old took to Instagram, captioning a few photos with ‘Really enjoyed today’, and a few emojis:
At the minute, the right-wing spot in the Celtic team seems as though it is Kuhn’s to lose. He has come into the side over the past few games and grasped his opportunity with both hands.
There is competition out wide with Yang due to return from a suspension versus Livingston and James Forrest making a few cameos here and there. It likely will be Kuhn, though, who gets the nod at the Tony Macaroni Arena in a fortnight.
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day One of my favourite 1890s newspaper quotes refers to Celtic player Paddy Gallagher and the day:
“socks, pawn tickets and shamrocks were kicking about the Celtic’s pavilion on Saturday, in commemoration of Pat Gallagher’s day.”
Today is a day when a great many pubs will report higher takings than normal; many Celtic fans may help boost those profits. This might be because it is St Patrick’s Day, although other fans may simply be choosing to try and drink to forget recent performances from Celtic!
The Bhoys are not playing today, instead they were yesterday in action against St Johnstone. It was a positive result for the Celts with all three points staying at Parkhead after Celtic’s comfortable 3-1 victory.
The Celtic squad arrived at Celtic Park yesterday afternoon sporting the new Irish heritage kit…
Over the years, Celtic have been in competitive action on St Patrick’s Day on 23 occasions. Some of these have been momentous and memorable occasions, others best forgotten.
Of these 23 games, 14 have resulted in wins for the Bhoys in different competitions, alongside seven draws and two defeats. Celtic have averaged around two goals scored in each of these matches (40 goals in 23 fixtures), whilst at the same time conceding on 30 occasions.
The vast majority of these matches have been league games, but there have some cup fixtures too.
Celtic Supporters at Celtic Park yesterday with an Irish/ Palestine tribute from the Green Brigade.
Mainly the Scottish Cup, but also the Southern League Cup (which became the Scottish League Cup after World War Two) and one European fixture.
That match – a home 1-1 draw against East German side FSV Zwickau – eventually saw Celtic exit the European Cup-Winner’s Cup following a 1-0 away defeat. This second match saw Celtic have to ‘adopt’ then 17-year old Roy Aitken so he was allowed to travel!
The club’s first St Patrick’s Day runout was a disaster. Playing in 1894 in Edinburgh against Leith Athletic, Celtic lost 5-0 in the final league game of the season. However as the green-and-white stripes had already clinched the title, it mattered little.
Although the Bhoys again played on 17 March in 1900 (an exciting 4-4 draw with Third Lanark in the Inter-City League), it took until 1917 before the now hooped Celts could celebrate a win on this day. This came in the form of a 2-1 victory when visiting Airdrie.
Perhaps the most famous and celebrated St Patrick’s Day game for the Bhoys came in 1991. Rangers came to Celtic Park in the Scottish Cup – and left two goals and three men down. You might say they were ‘massacred’.
When the Celts repeated this victory the following week with a 3-0 ‘Palm Sunday Humiliation’ league win, it was one of few highlights for the club in that era. This was in fact Celtic’s most recent St Patrick’s Day home game, more than three decades ago.
Outwith this victory over Rangers, perhaps Celtic’s other best fixtures on St Patrick’s Day have been two 6-0 victories. In both cases these games were played in Lanarkshire with Celtic winning away against Airdrie in 1954 and then at Motherwell in 1984.
Celtic’s most recent 17 March came five years ago in 2019. The Bhoys went to Dens Park and came away with a 1-0 victory thanks to a very, very late Odsonne Edouard winner.
Although there’s no game for Celtic men’s team today, the Bhoys very much need the luck of the Irish if they are to get anything from the rest of the season. Remember that if you’re out celebrating today.
And keep an eye on the Celtic FC Women’s SWPL1 match against theRangers Women which kicks off at 4.10pm this afternoon. Elena Sadiku’s side can narrow the gap to just one point with a win and the Celtic manager is confident that her team will deliver some St Patrick’s Day cheer to the Celtic support on this very special day.
Hail Glorious St Patrick, dear saint of our Isle!
Matthew Marr
Follow Matthew on Twitter @hailhailhistory
Matthew’s debut Celtic book titled ‘The Bould Bhoys – Glory to their name’ was published by Celtic Star Books last year and is available to order HERE for HALF PRCE or alternatively you can pick up a copy at any official Celtic store. This brilliant book is also available on Amazon Kindle for just £3.49 and includes all photo sections that appear in the hardback edition.
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