Celtic agree deal to sign Japanese defender in January

Celtic have signed four players from the J1 League since the appointment of Ange Postecoglou as manager in the summer of 2021. The majority of these moves has worked out quite well. Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda have all been first-team regulars. Unfortunately, Yosuke Ideguchi is the only one who has failed to make an impact. And now, it looks like the Hoops will be bringing in another player from Japan, when the January transfer window opens.

The player in question is Vissel Kobe’s 22-year-old centre-back, Yuki Kobayashi, who has represented Japan at the youth level.

As reported by Sponichi, Vissel Kobe’s Kobayashi will transfer to Celtic in January of next year. According to multiple sources, a formal offer has already arrived and an agreement has been reached between the clubs.

Kobayashi has decided to make his first move overseas by joining Celtic, and plans to sign a formal contract with the Glasgow giants after undergoing a medical.

Celtic have reached agreement to sign Kobayashi in January from Vissel Kobe

Kobayashi is 22 years of age but already a regular centre-back for Vissel Kobe. According to stats from Transfermarkt, he has made 40 appearances for the J1 League side this season.

Kobyashi stands at 6 feet tall and is a left-footed centre-back. That is the interesting part, and it looks like Postecoglou has plans to partner him with Cameron Carter-Vickers at the back.

Celtic already have a left-footed centre-back in Carl Starfelt but the Swede has had to deal with his fair share of injuries this season and barely featured till now. Thus, the two might compete for a spot in the starting XI.

Celtic have already signed a certain player named Kyogo from Vissel Kobe in the recent past, and it is safe to say that that proved to be a decent move.