Kyogo explains why he did not celebrate Celtic’s goal vs Rangers

It was a stunning and surreal moment when Kyogo Furuhashi scored for Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday. When the ball found the back of the net the reactions all around were very unusual for the normal maelstrom that is the Glasgow Derby. Now, the Japanese forward has himself explained why he was hesitant to celebrate.

The match was tied at 0-0 and was in the final minute of added time after a busy first half. Then Matt O’Riley headed the ball forward releasing Kyogo for a run on goal and his strike flew past Jack Butland to open the scoring. That proved to be the winner on the day.

Normally in a Glasgow Derby, the noise is enormous after a goal and the celebrations match it. That wasn’t the case at all at Ibrox when Kyogo scored. His goal stunned the home fans into silence.

The noise was hushed as they took in what had happened with disbelief. Of course, it was only home fans in the stadium, and there was no crowd of Celtic fans there to celebrate. And to add to the unsettling quietness, Kyogo himself was initially very subdued.

Why Kyogo did not celebrate Celtic’s goal vs Rangers

It looks like Kyogo was unsure whether he was onside or not. As reported by the Daily Record, he said on Celtic TV:

"“Matt headed it but I thought at first it was offside so I have to hit it first. I thought it was offside so I didn’t celebrate but it was a goal so in the end I was happy. Every goal feels like the best goal for me but to get the win was very important for us so I want to keep working hard and contributing to the team.”"

There was the customary VAR check afterwards, but it was very brief and showed the viewers that the move was perfect and not close to being ruled out for offside. Kyogo was able to claim his sixth goal against the Rangers and his third of the new season.

With hardly any time left before half-time, Kyogo left his real celebrations for full-time when the away win was sealed. It was a huge victory for Brendan Rodgers’ side securing joint top place in the Premiership with Motherwell. Rangers are now lagging four points behind in fourth place.