Life after Kyogo Furuhashi at Celtic has been rather interesting.
The 30-year-old joined Celtic in 2021 when Ange Postecoglou was in charge and he went on to forge an outstanding career in the famous green and white colours.
That unknown figure, who arrived from the J-League, went on to score a whopping 85 goals for the club in 165 matches and win eight trophies.
But, as Celtic chased the Treble under Brendan Rodgers this season, Kyogo wanted a new chapter in his footballing story, so he left and joined Rennes in January.
Many were surprised by Kyogo leaving and it raised questions as to what would happen to Celtic for the rest of the campaign, especially given that he wasn’t replaced during the winter transfer window.
But fast forward to the present and everything is rosy in Celtic’s garden, as life is proving to be a nightmare for Kyogo.
Scott Brown lauds Daizen Maeda’s performances after Kyogo Furuhashi left Celtic
Who knew that the answer to the Kyogo-shaped void up front was staring Celtic right in the face? Daizen Maeda has been outstanding since his fellow countryman’s exit.
Scott Brown stated that ‘everyone’ was saying the Hoops would ‘miss Kyogo so much’, but that hasn’t been the case.
The legendary midfielder pointed towards Maeda as the man who has stepped up and produced, as he told Premier Sports (09/03/25 at 2:40 pm).
“Maybe last season, when he was going one-v-one with the goalie, you weren’t sure if he was going to put the ball into the back of the net,” said Brown about Maeda.
“The work rate is unbelievable. Everyone is saying that ‘we are going to miss Kyogo so much’. But he has stepped up unbelievably.
On if he expected this form from Maeda: “Not as much as in goalscoring, but workrate, yes. He plays up front for Japan as well. He causes so many problems with his pace and teams are worried about that. They defend a lot deeper and it gives Celtic more space to play in.
“Then you have got Jota and Kuhn on the other side as well. It’s quality everywhere you look and that scares teams.”
Maeda’s stats for Celtic post-Kyogo
Nicolas Kuhn thought he was heading towards the Player of the Year award up until the turn of the year.
But Maeda has taken it to another level because, since Kyogo’s exit, he has gone goal crazy and he can’t stop performing.
| Maeda’s Games (Since Kyogo left) | Goals | Assists |
| 6 | 12 | 2 |
Overall for the campaign, the all-action forward has 27 goals in all competitions, including four strikes from nine matches in the Champions League.
It has put Maeda on a transfer map that fans wouldn’t want to see, but he is only getting that recognition because of how well he is performing.
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