Brendan Rodgers knows a thing or two about strikers.
Over the last decade he has worked with Luis Suarez, Moussa Dembele, Odsonne Edouard and Jamie Vardy.
All the football, passing and possession in the world all falls down unless you have people to put the ball in the net with Kyogo Furuhashi doing that 34 times for Celtic last season.
The virtual unknown signed from Vissel Kobe two years ago has provided the Celtic support with a new hero, after Jota’s departure news of Kyogo’s commitment and new contract has been warmly welcomed, especially by his new manager who told the Celtic website:
It is brilliant news for the club. Kyogo is an important player for us so I am delighted he has signed a new contract.
Kyogo has thrived since he arrived in Scottish football and has shown his outstanding qualities. In two seasons, he has secured five domestic honours, scored over 50 club goals and become a Treble winner. This takes a lot of hard work, dedication and sacrifice both on and off the pitch.
He is an exciting player who is hungry to bring more success to our club. He has a great mentality and is an unbelievable talent. I am looking forward to working with him and helping him and the wider team develop to help drive the club forward.
First time around Brendan Rodgers transformed the careers of half a dozen players including Tom Rogic, James Forrest, Mikel Lustig, Stuart Armstrong, Scott Brown and Callum McGregor.
The same level of remedial work isn’t required this time but after working with Vardy there are bound to be ideas to share with Kyogo.
Up until the turn of the year there were still some fans unsure if he could deliver in the big matches but an 87th minute equaliser at Ibrox on January 2 killed that argument and set the striker off on a brilliant scoring run in the Glasgow Derby.
At Hampden in February he scored twice to secure the League Cup, as he had done the previous season against Hibs while playing with a dodgy hamstring.
In April he notched another double past Allan McGregor to set the hoops up for a 3-2 victory that effectively clinched the SPFL Premiership title.
With 54 goals to his name already there is every chance that Kyogo will be joining James Forrest in the elite group that has scored 100 goals for Celtic.
Four more years for @Kyogo_Furuhashi! 🙆♂️
🟢 83 appearances
⚽ 54 goalsHappy with the news, Celts? 😃💚#KYOGO2027🍀🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/k71zF0sqsf
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) July 4, 2023
