Celtic’s Hayato Inamura has been an unusual signing, to say the least.
Well, in Brendan Rodgers’ words, he was a ‘club signing’.
Joining the Hoops for a small fee in the summer from J-League strugglers Albirex Niigata, Inamura had made just 36 senior appearances in his career, despite being aged 23.
This was because he has been through the country’s university system, just as Reo Hatate and Kyogo Furuhashi had. But unlike that pair, he couldn’t make an impact at Celtic.
In truth, though, he wasn’t given the chance to – and after just six months in Glasgow, he already looks set for the exit door.
What question would you ask Michael Nicholson and the Celtic board that would require a yes/no answer?
Hayato Inamura ‘set’ to leave Celtic
The J-League has been a happy market for Celtic since Ange Postecoglou signed Kyogo in 2021.
But in Yuki Kobayashi and Yosuke Ideguchi, we saw that not every signing from the division will be able to make an impact.
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Left-footed defender Inamura played in Celtic’s friendly against Newcastle in July, putting in a solid performance.
He was also handed a start by Rodgers out of nowhere against Livingston, playing the full 90 minutes and once again looking like a competent player.
But with so many left-sided defenders ahead of him in the pecking order, his signing just looks more and more baffling with each week – especially given that he wasn’t even registered for the Europa League.
And according to a report in Japan, FC Tokyo are set to reach an agreement with Celtic for Inamura, on a loan deal with an option to buy.
Managed by Rikizo Matsuhashi – who gave Inamura his senior debut at Niigata – they are reportedly leading the race ahead of Kawasaki Frontale, from whom the Hoops have signed Hatate and Shin Yamada.
The report from TRA doesn’t mention a figure, but the option to buy is particularly telling – it can’t be much higher than what Celtic paid in the summer.
Hayato Inamura set for a January Celtic exit. What did you make of the very little we saw of him?
Inamura hasn’t made a matchday squad since the Livingston game in September – he has appeared for the Celtic B team on a few occasions.
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