Ange Postecoglou, who headed Yokohama F. Marinos in the Meiji Yasuda Life J1 League, won the title at Celtic. Mr. Postecoglou mentioned the acquisition of Japanese players such as Japan national team FW Kyogo Furuhashi (27). The English newspaper “Daily Record” reports on the 25th.
Celtic missed the league title in the 2020/21 season and succeeded in pulling out Postecoglou from Yokohama F. Marinos in June last year. In July, when Kyogo Furuhashi was acquired from Vissel Kobe, Kyogo Furuhashi will demonstrate his original performance with a double-digit goal only in the first half of the season.
Furthermore, on December 31, last year, FW Daizen Maeda (24), midfielder Reo Hatate (24), midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi (25) and Japanese players were acquired one after another. When Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate became regular, Celtic won the Scottish Premiership (Scottish 1st Division) and the Scottish League Cup, partly due to the success of Japanese players.
Postecoglou, who suddenly succeeded in the first year of the European challenge, said about the reinforcement strategy for the 2021/22 season, “There was no special strategy for acquiring new strength. I just wanted to sign a good player and I went to Japan. I also knew that there were quality players. “
“In my four years of coaching in Japan, I’ve seen players with the talent and attitude to achieve my ideal football. In general, humans only look closer to themselves. . Europe and South America are said to be football powerhouses, and Asia is often thought of as a downgrade. “
“That’s the same reason I’ve never been given a chance. Asia is seen as the other side of the world, and Europe and South America are seen as football-strong continents, so history looking only at Europe. There is a trend of
“But there are a lot of great Japanese players in the Bundesliga, so I don’t think they’re much noticed in other countries (about the greatness of Japanese players). Asia and North America are getting more attention. If this is the case, it should be even more attractive as a market. “
In addition, “Daily Record” names U21 Japan national team MF Matsuoka Daiki (21) and FW Suzuki Yuito (20) who belong to Shimizu S-Pulse as Japanese players who may be transferred to Celtic this summer. I’m wondering if Postecoglou is envisioning the acquisition of more Japanese players.