Ange Postecoglou signing leaves Celtic and joins Portuguese club

Celtic's recruitment was tremendous under the management of Ange Postecoglou. The two transfer windows in 2021/22 were for the history books, as the club brought in the likes of Kyogo, Jota, Matt O'Riley, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and several others, who went on to enjoy a ton of success at Parkhead.

Their recruitment the following season was not nearly as good. One of Ange Postecoglou's last signings as Celtic manager was Yuki Kobayashi, who arrived in early 2023.

Considering the success players like Kyogo, Hatate and Daizen had enjoyed at the club, expectations were high surrounding Kobayashi. He got a few chances early on but failed to impress, failing to deal with the physicality of the Scottish game at times. By the end of the campaign, he had told his place in the starting XI and never regained.

Brendan Rodgers returned as Celtic manager last summer after Ange Postecoglou left for Tottenham Hotspur. Kobayashi was clearly not in the Northern Irishman's first-team plans, as he made zero appearances in the 23/24 season. And now, his time at Parkhead is coming to a close.

Ange Postecoglou signing leaves Celtic and joins Portuguese club

As reported by O Jogo, Portimonense have secured the signing of Kobayashi. He has signed a four-year deal and is now in Portugal.

To be honest, this feels like the best move for everyone involved. There was clearly no future for Kobayashi at Celtic under the management of Rodgers. He was nowhere near the first-team picture.

Many had expected Kobayashi to return to Japan but he has decided to stay in Europe, moving to Portugal. That could be the right move for the centre-back. The Portuguese is considered more technical and that might help him show his best football. Let's see how things play out. We can only wish him the best.