Celtic could lose another of their Japanese stars after Daizen Maeda completes his move to Ipswich Town this week. Maeda is potentially just hours away from completing his £10million move to the Tractor Boys, and the deal may even be wrapped up by the time you are reading this.
Maeda will realise his Premier League dream after being a superb servant for the club, but his departure will be the first of a number of key exits this summer. The next could be a fellow Japan international.
Celtic set to lose Reo Hatate
Another of the Celtic stars who wants to move on to pastures new is Reo Hatate, who fancies a change after four years at the club. Hatate has made 132 league appearances and has been a vital player for pretty much all of his time at the club.
Hatate stagnated a little last season, and while it has been cordial in public, there does seem to be a little needle between Hatate and O'Neill, or at least over O'Neill's style of play.
Something hasn't felt right, and it wasn't a big surprise when the 28-year-old politely asked to leave this summer. Up until now, transfer links involving Hatate have been few and far between, but it now looks as though an English side is pretty serious about signing him.
According to The I, recently relegated West Ham have shortlisted Hatate ahead of a potential move this summer. The Hammers have brought in big money following their relegation, selling Mateus Fernandes for £85million and Cysencio Summerville for more than £60million.
But even with two years remaining on his contract, Hatate will be a pretty affordable deal, likely to cost around £6million, according to most reports.
O'Neill open to Hatate sale
Speaking earlier this summer, O'Neill said about a potential Hatate sale: "I think that Reo has done exceptionally well at the football club since he arrived. People have said he might even have been the best player in Scotland two or three years ago.
"I think myself that he's probably looking to maybe see if there's new pastures for him. I'll see how it goes with him here when he's there. So, like everything else, during this particular time, it's a bit unsettling for players, a wee bit like Maeda. So, you just don't know."
Now it's over to West Ham to see whether they will make a bid, and indeed it will match what Celtic are looking for.
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