Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has stated he prefers Daizen Maeda used as a central attacking option, rather than placing him out on the wing.
Under the former boss, Maeda was most often used as a wide attacking threat, with his pressing and harrying put to very good use on the flank. Celtic often looked to utilise his pace and movement to break behind the opposition defence.
However, Rodgers now plans to not only use him in a different position but provide the 25-year-old with a very different approach.
‘Excellent’ Daizen Maeda ready for new Celtic dawn
The Celtic manager said [Daily Record]: “I like him more through the middle. I think he does a good job on the side. But there is a reason he plays for Japan through the middle. I think his penetration and his movement is terrific. I was really impressed with his touch too, because I think he’s usually a player who is running away from the ball. But when he had to link the game and set the game I thought he was very good. And how he threatened their backline was excellent.
“On top of that his pressing is phenomenal. I like players at the top end who can really press the game and Daizen can definitely do that. There are parts of his game to develop but we don’t want him to be one who is running away from the ball. When defences are deep we need the front players to come off it, lay the ball off and get in the box. It’s an important aspect of football and I could see on Wednesday that Daizen could do that as he was excellent.
“It’s just about adding to players’ development. Daizen is still a young player who can improve. Of course, his strength is running in behind but sometimes there won’t always be that space. So can we develop his game and get him into areas he can work the defenders? But we could see from that 60 minutes against Yokohama he can do a bit of everything – and score goals. He’s a very honest player who will play anywhere for the team. He’s done a really good job playing out wide. But when I look at his strengths he’s very much suited to playing central.”
So there you go. That’s pretty definitive from Rodgers. It seems Maeda will join the pool of players who can play through the middle, alongside Kyogo Furuhashi and Hyeongyu Oh.
That may limit his minutes in a Celtic shirt, especially if Kyogo again catches fire from a goalscoring perspective, but it’s useful to understand Rodgers’ vision for him heading into the new season.
It could also lead to more opportunities for Sead Haksabanovic, as well as free up room for new signings Marco Tilio and Yang Hyun-jun to make an impact.
I’m sure Maeda will be used on the left flank at various points. It’s a long season. But the manager couldn’t be much clearer, he has a plan for the Japanese star and it could radically change his game at the Bhoys.
In other news, Celtic’s total summer spend so far as Bhoys enter new phase of transfer window.
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