Celtic have spent money on four of their six signings so far this summer.
Benjamin Nygren has been the most expensive at £2m having joined from FC Nordsjælland, while left-sided defender Hayato Inamura comes in at second.
Inamura cost just £250k from Albirex Niigata and Brendan Rodgers explained that he is one for the future, not the present.
But the 23-year-old defied his boss by putting in an excellent debut display in the 2-1 friendly win over Cork City on Tuesday evening.
Inamura impressed Celtic fans inside the stadium and around the world, perhaps proving he could be useful in the first-team as Kieran Tierney’s understudy.
However, Chris Sutton isn’t so sure of that. Writing in his Daily Record column, despite putting in a brilliant display against Cork, Sutton doubts Inamura can be a longer term replacement for Tierney.
The ex-Hoops hitman said: “It’s no surprise to see Celtic continuing to shop in the Japanese market given the spectacular success of most of their signings from that neck of the woods.
“There is no longer the risk attached to bringing in a player from the other side of the world because the likes of Kyogo, Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate have flourished in Scotland.
“A few haven’t quite made the same impact, of course, but there’s not the same concerns about adapting to the game as some people might have had previously.
“Hayato Inamura was the latest export and after it sounded like he was going to be farmed out on loan, Brendan Rodgers seemed pleasantly surprised by his display in Cork and might have more of a look.
“Is he going to be the long-term back up for Kieran Tierney? I doubt it. He’s still very much one for the future as you wouldn’t want to have to chuck him in for the final 20 minutes of a Champions League qualifier.”
Rodgers pleasantly ‘surprised’ by Inamura
Speaking after the Cork Super Cup victory, Rodgers admitted he may need to reassess his original plan for Inamura after his fantastic 45-minute performance.
Rodgers said: “100 percent. I’m not fixed on it. The plan was to bring him in, see how he does pre-season, thinking that he may need to get out and play.
“But I always judge players on the pre-season, on how they look and are they going to be capable. He’s certainly in the few days training, he’s shown he’s so smooth with the ball. Not only that, he plays forward.
“I’ve got to say, he surprised me. In these first days training, he’s so competent with the ball. He’s a good size. His comfort on the ball, his willingness to attack is really good. So we’ll see how he looks over the remaining games.”
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