Martin O’Neill has a Reo Hatate conundrum to deal with at Celtic.
Everyone has been piling in with how poor Hatate has been for Celtic this season, but Kris Boyd had a rather interesting and alternative view.
Boyd thinks Hatate’s drop in form is probably down to the Celtic midfielder wanting ‘better players’ around him, as he cited recent transfer windows that haven’t gone well for the Hoops.
The issue with Hatate is that he has been poor under three different managers this season, although Boyd does think O’Neill has been the only one, for a small period, to spark him into life.
You can only keep one of Daizen Maeda or Reo Hatate at Celtic…
Who do you pick?
Kris Boyd on the reason behind Reo Hatate’s poor form for Celtic
Whatever is happening off the pitch, it shouldn’t stop a player from showing the fight and attitude like he wants to wear the shirt.
To put it simply, Hatate hasn’t showcased that.
But Boyd told Sky Sports Football that the Japan star has set the bar at the champions of Scotland, and he probably needs players of that level to return to his old self.
“I think it works both ways,” said Boyd. “It’s easy to look at Reo Hatate and think ‘potentially he has downed tools, and he is looking for a move elsewhere.’
“But you could also look at the recruitment from Celtic over a period of time now, where he has been in and around there. He has set the levels that he’s got to.
“He’s probably thinking, ‘I want better players in and around me to help me get back to that level.’
“I have watched European games, and he ran them. He has run games against Rangers. He is someone who, when he is on his game, is a top, top player.
“He would have commanded a high, high fee. There is no doubt about it. Right now, his form has dipped, for whatever reason that is.
“You look at when Martin came back in there (in October). He got a bit out of him, and he will be looking to try and get that out of him again.”
Is the Celtic midfield too one-dimensional?
The Celtic midfielders Hatate has played alongside
Callum McGregor is the main guy in midfield, and then the rest follow. But that doesn’t mean you can’t shine brighter than the Celtic skipper.
In fact, many have, in different ways, with summer signing Benjamin Nygren showcasing his goalscoring skills, and Arne Engels proving to be a dead-ball specialist.
But these are the midfielders Hatate has played alongside since the start of last season, and should he have complaints that they aren’t on his level?
- Callum McGregor
- Benjamin Nygren
- Arne Engels
- Paulo Bernardo
- Jude Bonnar
- Luke McCowan
- Sean McArdle
- Michel-Ange Balikwisha
- Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
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