Daizen Maeda hasn’t been himself this season, and his performances for Celtic have fallen off a cliff.
But that hasn’t stopped Chris Sutton from calling for Maeda to start Celtic’s pivotal Premiership clash against Rangers on Sunday.
Despite the Japanese star playing like his ‘shoelaces have been tied together’ this season, Sutton noted the player’s ‘success’ in the Glasgow derby over the years, especially against James Tavernier.
“The other one for me (to start against Rangers) is Daizen Maeda,” said Sutton. “Okay, it looks like his shoelaces have been tied together at times in front of the goal this season.
“But this is a fixture where he’s had a lot of success – especially up against James Tavernier.”
What’s interesting is that Maeda started and played the entire game, as Celtic beat VfB Stuttgart 1-0 in the Europa League on Thursday night, so could that be an indication that Martin O’Neill might rotate? Because Sutton doesn’t want his former boss to do so.
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Chris Sutton wants Daizen Maeda to start for Celtic against Rangers
The other option O’Neill can turn to on the left flank is the ever-improving Sebastian Tounekti, who has produced several strong performances of late.
But as Sutton stated, Tounekti is ‘more effective’ from the bench, so that’s another reason why he would prefer Maeda to start against the Gers.
“Up front, Junior Adamu put himself about in Germany and did well for McCowan’s goal, but I’d expect Tomas Cvancara to start,” Sutton told The Daily Record.
“The other one for me is Daizen Maeda. Okay, it looks like his shoelaces have been tied together at times in front of the goal this season.
“But this is a fixture where he’s had a lot of success – especially up against James Tavernier. It looks like the Rangers captain will be called on, with Dujon Sterling struggling for fitness.
“And that means it has to be Maeda on the left flank. Sebastian Tounekti has blown hot and cold at times, but it does seem he can be more effective from the bench anyway.”
Maeda’s record against Rangers
For years and years, Maeda tormented Rangers, and especially their skipper, who endured nightmare game after nightmare game against the all-action forward.
But in recent matches, not only have Celtic failed to produce in this fixture, but Maeda hasn’t been able to shine like he is used to.
Hopefully, with these two fixtures against Rangers coming up, that will change and revert to normal service, because if Maeda turns up, then the champions of Scotland will, most likely, win.
- Maeda’s games against Rangers: 23
- Wins: 13
- Draws: 5
- Defeats: 5
- Goals scored by Maeda: 5
- Assists by Maeda: 5
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