Kyogo Furuhashi has had a tough time of it since leaving Celtic for Stade Rennais.
Kyogo made his £10 million move from Celtic to Rennes in the winter transfer window as he looked to kickstart his Japan career.
Since the move, Kyogo has struggled to break into the Ligue 1 club’s first team after making just five appearances since his Celtic exit to France.
And now, the manager who signed the former Hoops stiker, former Rennes manager Jorge Sampaoli, has spoken out and shared who really decided to give Celtic £10 million for Kyogo.
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Who really signed Celtic icon Kyogo Furuhashi at Rennes
Sampaoli told the Daily Record: “The owner of the club is a very important person in France and, frankly, the club was not up to the expectations that I had compared to the market.
“The sports director decided to make a transfer window that had nothing to do with what we needed.
“We preferred to cut the bridges. I could not represent a team which I had not chosen the players in the winter transfer window.
“We even talked about players who have already played with us to change the story more easily, but we were not listened to.”
Is there a case for Kyogo Furuhashi’s return to Celtic
The Daily Record has previously reported that Rennes are planning to sell the former Celtic striker so is there a case for Kyogo to return to Paradise?
Firstly, the emergence of Daizen Maeda has shown Celtic that there is life after Kyogo as the Japanese winger-turned-striker turns into a goal machine this season.
If Kyogo were to return to Celtic, where would he sit in terms of the starting pecking order under Brendan Rodgers?
Maeda is obviously the first-choice forward at Celtic now, with Adam Idah as a backup. If Kyogo returned, would he return as the second striker at the club, and if so, what message would that send to Idah?
However, Celtic does need another striker and with Kyogo, the club and Rodgers know what they are going to get.
There is no doubt Kyogo’s form dipped as the realisation that he wanted to leave Celtic settled in, and now that the move has turned sour, the return of the talisman could cause more problems than it solves.
Kyogo will always be remembered fondly by the Celtic support, and maybe that’s where the story should end.
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