Injured Celtic player could return for Rangers game

Celtic have been dealing with injury problems throughout the course of the season and that is one of the biggest reasons why they have never really gotten any real momentum going. Whenever it looks like they are set to go on a consistent run of form, key players pick up problems and things are derailed.

At this point in time, the club have three key starters sitting on the sidelines in the form of Liel Abada, Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda. The Japanese forward was the latest to pick up an injury.

Maeda was shown a red card for a tackle against Atletico Madrid in midweek, which most people felt should not have been a sending off. Ironically, he ended up suffering an injury in the process of making it as well.

Maeda has been a key part of Brendan Rodgers’ team. He might not be putting up impressive numbers in terms of goal contributions, but the work-rate and energy he brings up top are unmatched and set the tone for Celtic in many ways. The good news is that it looks like he could be back in time for the Glasgow Derby.

Injured Celtic player could return for Rangers game

As reported by the Daily Record, Rodgers said while talking about the situation of Maeda:

"“He’ll hopefully be back for then. I’m pretty sure of you are looking at him that’s he’s a quick healer. We’ll just have to see but at this moment in time, he’s down in London having his assessment. But by that period he should be back.”"

If Maeda is back in time for the game against the Rangers, it would have to be considered a major boost for Celtic. Until then, it remains to be seen how they do without him.

At this point in time, Luis Palma seems almost certain to start in the absence of Maeda and Abada. The Honduran international has impressed since arriving in the summer and exceeded a lot of expectations to be very honest. Either James Forrest or Yang Hyun-jun are likely to be partnering with him on the wings for the foreseeable future.