Kyogo Furuhashi Establishing Himself as a Top Celtic Star | OneFootball

Celtic have been fortunate enough to have some great forwards at the club throughout history. Jimmy Quinn, Jimmy McGrory, Kenny Dalglish and Henrik Larsson are just some of the players who lit up Celtic Park.

Although he is only in his second season at the club, Kyogo Furuhashi is quickly becoming a player who could cement his name in the Celtic history books. The Japan international has an excellent strike rate in a Celtic shirt.

Kyogo was signed by Celtic in the summer of 2021 from Japanese J1 League club Vissell Kobe for a deal in the region of £4.5 million. In his first campaign in Glasgow, he helped the club go on to regain the Scottish Premiership title, scoring 12 goals in 20 league appearances.

Celtic’s number eight is on course to better his tally from last season as he has scored seven goals from his opening nine games in the 2022/23 campaign. It includes a hat-trick in a 9-0 victory over Dundee United for the Bhoys back in August.

The 27-year-old was named in the PFA Scotland Team of the Year last season. If he continues in the form he is showing, he could scoop the top individual award at end of the current campaign. He would become only the second Japanese player in history to lift that trophy, after Shunsuke Nakamura, who was named the PFA winner in 2007 following a great year for Celtic.

Strong Forward Line Helping to Share Load

Kyogo is part of a strong forward line in Ange Postecoglou’s team where each player is having a key role. After 10 games of the current Scottish Premiership season, the Japanese forward leads the team in goals, but he is being supported well.

Greece international Giorgos Giakoumakis is just one goal behind his teammate through the opening 10 matches. Last season’s Scottish Premiership leading goalscorer missed some football through injury earlier in the campaign, but when he has played, he has shown his class. One of his most important goals this season came in the fifth minute of stoppage time in Celtic’s 2-1 victory over St Johnstone.

Liel Abada and Jota have both also taken their opportunities in Postecoglou’s side when they have been selected. It means that the Australian has a selection dilemma ahead of every game, a nice problem to have as a manager.

The form of Celtic’s forward line should ensure each player pushes themselves to be at their best. Furuhashi looks to be enjoying that competition and at this stage of the season, he is arguably the player Postecoglou will find most difficult to leave out in the games.

Japan’s Hopes Could Rest on Kyogo at World Cup in Qatar

Kyogo is set to feature at the 2022 World Cup for Japan, as the country qualified for the tournament in Qatar after finishing second in Group B of their AFC qualification group.

As of 25 October, Japan are 250/1 on Betway for the trophy. Those odds suggest they are one of the outsiders, however, they have reached the knockout stages of the tournament on three of their six appearances so far.

Kyogo is set to lead the line for Japan in the competition. The Celtic forward has scored three times in 16 appearances for his country. All three of those goals came in the World Cup qualifying campaign. He netted twice against Mongolia, while he opened the scoring in a victory over Tajikistan.

Japan have been drawn in the same group as Germany, Spain and Costa Rica at the 2022 World Cup. All three of those games will represent a strong challenge to the AFC nation. The experience gained in the UEFA Champions League this season will stand Furuhashi in good stead for those matches.

Daizen Maeda left celebrates with Celtic s Reo Hatate after Celtic’s third goal of the game during the cinch Premiership match at Tynecastle on Saturday October 22, 2022. Photo Jane Barlow

Although Japan have yet to announce their final squad for the World Cup, Furuhashi could be joined in Qatar by club teammates Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate. Those two players have been featuring for their country in their latest matches this year.

Kyogo is a firm fan favourite for both club and country. Hopefully, this is just a start to his Celtic career, and if he stays in Glasgow for many years to come, he could go down as a club legend when he retires.

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