Latest update on Celtic’s Kyogo and the Japan national team situation

Kyogo has been Celtic’s talisman this season. There were a lot of questions about his signing when he arrived in the summer and whether he could get it done in Scottish football. It has not take the Japanese superstar long though to establish himself as a fan favourite at Parkhead and as one of the best players in the entire Premiership. It has proven to be an absolute transfer masterstroke on the part of the club to say the least.

According to stats from Transfermarkt, Kyogo has scored 16 goals and provided 5 assists in 26 appearances for Celtic this season.

Also, by scoring a match-winning brace against Hibernian in the Scottish League Cup final, he proved that he is a man for the big occasion. Thus, Celtic have been handed a major worry, with his participation in the upcoming Glasgow Derby in doubt.

The Japan national team will have important World Cup qualifiers around the same time the game against the Rangers is scheduled for, February 2. There have been suggestions though that the strict guidelines in the country could prevent Kyogo from being called up to international duty, although there is a latest update on the situation.

Latest update on Celtic’s Kyogo and the Japan national team situation

As reported by The Sunday Post, the technical director of Japan’s international side, Yasuharu Sorimach, said:

"“The Japanese government should know the significance of our participation in the World Cup in Qatar.“I believe we will negotiate various conditions for the games against China and Saudi Arabia. It is imperative we have our best squad for the game.”"

Thus, it is pretty clear that the Japanese national side will try their best to have their best squad available. It remains to be seen how the situation turns out though.

Of course, there are more worries surrounding Kyogo right now. He had suffered an injury against Real Betis earlier in the month and was forced off the pitch once again, this time in the recent game against St Johnstone. One can only hope that he is able to recover fully during the course of the winter break.