With Celtic’s transfer business much to do with the chat surrounding the club at the moment, there is also an upcoming issue that could deprive the club of at least FIVE of their seven new signings this month and next.
With the World Cup qualifiers hitting at the end of January, the Hoops could be resigned to losing Kyogo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi for Japan but also Riley McGree and Tom Rogic for Australia.
The last two, the Socceroos, are more likely to go than not, but what about our Japanese contingent?
How many do we expect to get called up for their upcoming fixtures?
That very question was posed to the Celtic fans go to guy for Japanese news, journalist Dan Orlowitz.
Orlowitz was asked by a fan if he could shed any light on the likelihood of all of Celtic’s Japanese players being called up by their country and Orlowitz gave a bitter/sweet update:
(Again those are all my as-I-see-it guesstimates, and I'm gaming a bunch of hypotheticals especially in light of the Uzbekistan friendly being canceled, which would have given Japan's domestic players a chance to limber up a little early.)
— Dan Orlowitz (@aishiterutokyo) January 11, 2022
But as he went on to qualify his point as a supporter said that we shouldn’t lose both Maeda and Kyogo, Dan agreed and this should, at least, be of some comfort to the Hoops fans:
As long as Moriyasu remains too stubborn to start Kyogo up top, I agree w/ this.
If you're not starting Kyogo, there's little point in calling up Maeda b/c you want to be able to make that substitution at 70' when you need a certified killer to put the game away. https://t.co/EVDPuGP1zr
— Dan Orlowitz (@aishiterutokyo) January 11, 2022
I expect 1, would be surprised by 2, would be shocked by 3, and 4 is simply unimaginable.
Ideguchi has been out of the NT picture for 2+ years, he’s gotta earn his way back in and that’s not going to happen this month.
— Dan Orlowitz (@aishiterutokyo) January 11, 2022
Postecoglou does have the option to ask for a postponement of any games if he has more than three players on international duty at any one time but it is no known yet if that is an option he would be willing to take up.