‘He was good under Ange Postecoglou’ – BBC man admits Brendan Rodgers has took Celtic hero ‘to the next level’

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Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has a reputation for improving players at every club he has been at.

In his first spell at Celtic, Rodgers took Kieran Tierney and Moussa Dembele under his wing and turned them into players sought after by Arsenal and Lyon.

Rodgers, in his current spell at the club, has improved Reo Hatate, Alistair Johnston and even Celtic captain Callum McGregor as he takes the Parkhead club on the brink of yet another treble.

But it seems that it’s another of Ange Postecoglou’s signings that former Rangers man and BBC pundit Kevin Thomson says Rodgers has taken his game up a level.

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Daizen Maeda is a Celtic ‘teammate’s dream’

Daizen Maeda has been in scintillating from for Celtic this season under Rodgers.

The Japan international has scored 33 goals and scored in every competition Celtic have taken part in this season.

And that is why Thomson has hailed Rodgers’ part in helping take Maeda’s game at Celtic to the next level.

Thomson told The Scottish Football Podcast, “I can imagine he’s a teammate’s dream.

“The energy that he’s got, his counterpressed. He looks as though he loves playing football, which is refreshing to see because you should, especially when you represent the big clubs.

“There’s a lot of pressure that comes along with that. That can look different if you’re finishing second.

“He’s potentially not been in that case since he’s obviously come to Celtic, but he looks like one that under Brendan, I thought he was good under Ange Postecoglou, but I feel as though Brendan’s took his game to the next level and the plaudits that he gets, I think are deservedly so.”

Daizen Maeda’s Celtic stats for Brendan Rodgers vs Ange Postecoglou

Maeda has a very good goalscoring record at Celtic and under Rodgers and Postecoglou the Celtic winger has picked up a plethora of medals.

So how do his numbers stack up under both managers?

With over double the number of goals and one more assist, Rodgers has Maeda on fire as the Celtic winger impresses both domestically and on the continent.

With six games of the season to, Maeda is likely to add to his goalscoring tally and create more history at the club.