Daizen Maeda’s comments about wanting to leave Celtic in the summer have commanded quite the reaction in Scotland.
The forward – who was named Celtic’s Player of the Year last season – decided to go public with his experience whilst at international training with Japan, admitting that he had agreed personal terms to leave in the recent transfer window.
Brentford were one of the clubs to be linked with Maeda in the summer, with Turkish giants Fenerbahce’s interest also being confirmed.
However, the player’s desire for the move was not known until his bombshell comments in the Japanese media. Maeda’s move was likely blocked due to Celtic already facilitating the departure of Nicolas Kuhn to Como.
For Brendan Rodgers, the player remaining was likely a non-negotiable – but it’s fair to say that fans in Japan aren’t quite seeing it that way.
Japan fans slate Celtic for Daizen Maeda situation… ‘Japanese players shouldn’t go there’
Japanese fans tend to continue to support players when they leave their homeland for Europe, believing their level of competition is beneficial for the national team.
This has led them to vent their frustrations at Celtic’s refusal to sell Maeda – denying him the opportunity to play at a perceived higher level.
Speaking on X, one fan said: “Celtic is a club that’s still got sky-high pride. Seriously, going to Celtic ain’t gonna bring you any good.”
@Rf9lfc9 complained: “That club only gets in the way of every Japanese person’s step-up, doesn’t it?”
Another user simply agreed: “Japanese people shouldn’t go to Celtic.”
@0122_jam added: “Don’t transfer to clubs like this, as a bad example to everyone.”
A final fan even mentioned Shunsuke Nakamura, asserting in a longer post: “No matter how much you want to go abroad, if you choose the wrong destination, it can be tough, right?”
One certainly hopes that these fans don’t have any influence over Maeda or any Japanese player’s thought-process while at Celtic… these fans aren’t mincing their words!
Daizen Maeda comments are an unwanted development for Brendan Rodgers
Maeda’s words were incredibly revealing, particularly given how settled he appears to be in Scotland with his family – but his future plans now couldn’t be clearer.
Speaking to Japanese media via gekisaka, he said: “I had received an offer, and I had been telling the club that I wanted to take the next step, but Celtic hadn’t been able to make any good reinforcements, so in the end they told me that they couldn’t let me.
“There were some things that I had agreed to personally, so I wanted to take on the challenge. My joining the national team was delayed, and I had been talking to Celtic until the last day, but it didn’t work out.”
Given his and Celtic’s rocky start to the season, all eyes will be on the forward when club football returns – if he is to get a move, his performance level must be good enough to earn it.
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