Daizen Maeda was the headline grabbing signing on the part of Celtic in the January transfer window. He had already worked with Ange Postecoglou, during their time together in Japan at Yokohama F. Marinos, and looked like the perfect fit for his style of football. He also had experience of playing in Europe, with Maritimo in Portugal. On top of that, he had topped the scoring charts in the J1 League in the 2021 season as well.

Thus, it was a very exciting signing on the part of Celtic to say the least. And while it is clear that he is still settling into life at Parkhead, it goes without saying that the start has been very promising and could be a sign of big things to come.

According to stats from Transfermarkt, he has scored twice in his first four appearances for the club across all competitions till now.

One would expect him to get even better as he adjusts more to his new surroundings and teammates. But Celtic fans will be excited by the comments of his former coach at Yokohama F. Marinos, Shaun Ontong. As reported by KEEPUP, he said:

“I think this style of football, it just suits his game so much.

“He has a next level in him. He always had a hunger to learn. Great character. Even before, last year, he was studying English. He would practice with me sometimes. You always knew he had ambitions again to go.”

Ontong’s Maeda claim will excite Celtic fans

Out of the three Japanese players that Celtic signed in the January transfer window, Reo Hatate has adjusted the quickest and has already put in a match winning performance in the Glasgow Derby, scoring twice and assisting once against the Rangers.

But one has to remember that Maeda had to leave on international duty for Japan towards the end of January and as a result, he has not had a continuous run of games at Celtic till now.

Fans are expecting him to get even better moving forward and that is why they will be excited by Ontong’s comments about the Japanese star. Now, let’s see what the future holds.

This article was originally posted here