Kyogo Furuhashi was phenomenal during his time as a Celtic player, scoring 85 goals for the Hoops. Many fans even considered him the best the club had had since Henrik Larsson, especially during the Japanese international's peak form under the management of Ange Postecoglou. He scored 34 goals during the 22/23 campaign.
Kyogo was never able to rediscover that form following the arrival of Brendan Rodgers as manager after Postecoglou left for Tottenham Hotspur. While he continued being the first-choice striker, his output was almost halved.
Kyogo would end up joining Rennes in the winter, a move that was unexpected. Most fans would have expected him to wait at least until the summer after qualification past the Champions League group round had been secured.
The move to Rennes has proven to be a major misstep on the part of Kyogo. He has barely featured since then. He has made six appearances for the French Ligue 1 side, with only one of them being a start, as he has been often left on the bench as an unused substitute.
Celtic fans left stunned by Rennes manager's Kyogo claim
Naturally, most Celtic fans feel that he is not a key part of the Rennes manager's plans. The man himself, Habib Beye, does not agree with that sentiment. As reported by The Scottish Sun, he said:
"Even if he doesn't get the minutes he would like, he is an integral part of my squad.
"Kyogo's lack of playing time doesn't mean he doesn't meet my expectations, otherwise he wouldn't be in the squad and he wouldn't come on as a sub.
"He's a quality player and he will bring something to the team, I'm convinced of that."
Of course, those could very well be calculated comments from Beye, looking to keep the morale of his squad high, as we head towards the final few games of the campaign. After that, decisions are going to be made in the summer.
There have been suggestions that Rennes could already be looking to part ways with Kyogo. There has been speculation about a potential return to Celtic as well. Let's see how things play out over the coming months.