Celtic star Daizen Maeda will not be travelling to Japan to take on Canada and Tunisia over the next eight days, his national team confirmed on Monday.
The Japanese federation released a statement on their official website earlier today confirming that the winger had been withdrawn from duty. Hayao Kawabe of Standard Liege has been called up in his place.
Unfortunately, the reason given is injury, but it’s not yet clear what the extent of any issue is.
Maeda was part of a strong Celtic performance against Kilmarnock on Saturday, playing 89 minutes of the fixture and registering an assist in the 3-1 win.
Clearly, he’s picked up some sort of knock and he’ll be staying in Scotland over the next fortnight as the Bhoys prepare to take on Hearts at Tynecastle on October 22nd.
Maeda is an important part of Brendan Rodgers’ starting eleven right now so everyone will be hoping whatever issue he is dealing with isn’t too serious.
The winger has only netted one goal so far this season but he hads so much to team performances and is a constant thorn in the side of opposition teams.
Rodgers’ alternative wing options include Hyunjun Yang and James Forrest, with Marco Tilio and Mikey Johnston also in reserve. Luis Palma has played his way into a prime first-team spot, too.
With matches against Atletico Madrid and away to Hibernian beyond that Tynecastle test, we’ll need Maeda in the team as soon as possible.
In other news, The Lennoxtown prep that inspired Saturday’s 84-touch Celtic masterclass.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
