It would have been very odd for the Celtic supporters to see Kyogo Furuhashi in blue.
Birmingham City’s new star made his competitive debut for the club on Friday night when his side recorded a 1-1 draw against recently-relegated Ipswich Town.
Kyogo was handed a start in the Championship opener, and whilst he didn’t score, he sure impressed and showcased the signs that made him a legend at Celtic.
It’s crazy to think that, this time last season, Kyogo was preparing for another trophy-winning campaign with Scotland’s most successful club, as well as Champions League football, but now, he is playing in England’s second tier.
Celtic hero Kyogo Furuhashi’s Birmingham City debut
One man who has an association with Celtic and Birmingham is Peter Grant, after his legendary spell at Parkhead, he was also part of Alex McLeish’s coaching staff at St Andrews.
Grant told Go Radio that Kyogo ‘looked sharper’ after his nightmare spell in Rennes, and his disallowed goal in the first half shouldn’t have been ruled as a foul.
Birmingham had to share the spoils, but Grant is liking what he is seeing from the Japan star, although he did question where the player stands in terms of his shoulder issue.
“He scored a fantastic goal,” said Grant. “I don’t think it was a free-kick (for Kyogo’s disallowed goal).
“To be fair, he looked a bit sharper, I must admit. He has been working hard, and that is a tough league.
“The interesting thing for me is, how is he going to play, because I know he has this shoulder issue, but because of the games, that Championship down there is relentless. Saturday. Tuesday.
“So, very little training gets done; it’s all about travelling and playing. That will be interesting. It will be interesting to see how he handles the Championship, but his movement was excellent all night.
“But it definitely wasn’t a free-kick because two seconds later the defender did the exact same thing, and the referee played on.”
What the numbers said about Kyogo’s first outing for Birmingham
As Birmingham fans will find out, Kyogo doesn’t get involved in the play as much, but when he does, you notice him more than anyone else on the pitch.
His movement is of the highest quality, and he showcased that time and time again against Ipswich, including producing two audacious chips, one of which led to the opening goal.
It’s still early days yet, but this is how the Celtic hero fared on his Birmingham debut, as rated by WhoScored.
- Shots: 2
- Goals disallowed: 1
- Hit the woodwork: 1
- Passes: 6
- Passing accuracy: 16.7%
- Crosses: 1
- Long Balls: 1
- Aerials won: 1
- Touches: 13
- Fouled: 2
- Rating: 6.32
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
