Martin O’Neill reveals timeline to tackle Daizen Maeda’s Celtic future

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Martin O’Neill has revealed that he plans to sit down with Daizen Maeda to thrash out his Celtic future.

The interim Celtic boss is already hard at work looking to make additions to the Hoops squad as O’Neill looks to salvage the season that has been left in tatters by Wilfried Nancy.

O’Neill returned to Celtic yesterday afternoon after he received a call from Dermot Desmond to look after the club due to Nancy’s untimely departure.

And now that his feet are firmly back under the table, the returning Celtic manager is looking to sort out Daizen Maeda’s Celtic future as soon as he possibly can.

• READ MORE: The real reason Martin O’Neill said yes to Dermot Desmond about returning to Celtic

Martin O’Neill would ‘love’ Daizen Maeda to stay at Celtic

Talk of Maeda’s Celtic future has been rife this season after a promised summer transfer moved away from Paradise never materialised.

And now that O’Neill is back at the club, he is making sorting out the Japanese winger’s future one of his top priorities at Celtic.

O’Neill said via the Daily Record, “Will Daizen hang around? I don’t know what’s happened since. There’s little point in me saying he’s really happy and wants to stay and then tomorrow morning he’s gone.

“I’ll have a word and figure out what he’s thinking through his agent. I think there was a little bit of disappointment that the move didn’t go through to Wolfsburg I think in August time?

“If you’re asking me, I’d love him to stay. But I genuinely don’t know. The next press conference I’ll be able to tell you.”

Many Celtic supporters will be hoping that O’Neill can work his magic and persuade Maeda to stay at the club.

Or at the very least, get the winger back to his best at Celtic and as close to the form he enjoyed in his standout season last year where Maeda won the POTY Award.

Daizen Maeda’s Celtic season so far

Maeda has had a rollercoaster season where even the Japanese star will admit his standards are nowhere close to what he achieved under Brendan Rodgers.

So far, the Celtic winger/striker has scored seven goals and provided seven assists in 29 games. That’s miles off the 33 goals and 12 assists of last season.

With two trophies still up for grabs, if O’Neill can turn around Celtic’s season and Maeda’s form anf bag a double, he will leave the club as an immortal, if he’s not one already, at the end of this season.