Celtic central midfielder Reo Hatate was sent off in Thursday night’s Europa League match against Bologna, giving his team a difficult task after scoring the opening goal in the match.
The Japanese team was given their marching orders with two yellow cards in fairly quick succession, and the frustrating thing is that the second yellow card was completely avoidable.
As seen in the clip above, the flag bearer never beat a player to the ball to start the Celtic attack, nor did he have to make contact with the Bologna players, who were in perfect screen position.
He gave the referee a decision that put his team on the back foot for the rest of the game, but this isn’t the first time his performance hasn’t been good enough this season.
Why Celtic must release Reo Hatate
According to Transfermarkt, anyone who has followed Hatate’s time in Scotland, whether he is a Celtic supporter or not, will know that he has great quality and can influence games with goals and assists, as evidenced by his 33 goals and 31 assists for the club.
His goal against Bologna was probably the easiest of his Hoops career, but on Thursday night he was in the right place at the right time to score his third goal of the Europa League campaign.
However, his work outside of possession has not been up to the standard required in this season’s Scottish Premiership or Europa League. It’s not just because he was sent off in the last game against Italy.
Hatate (25/26) | premiership | europe league |
|---|---|---|
Appearance | 19 | 7 |
the goal | 1 | 3 |
assist | 2 | 1 |
Tackles + Interceptions per game | 1.0 | 1.3 |
Ground duel success rate | 47% | 45% |
Aerial duel success rate | 39% | 0% |
Duels won per match | 2.3 | 2.0 |
Statistics by Sofascore | ||
As you can see from the table above, the Flag Bearers have lost the majority of defensive duels on the deck and in the air in both competitions this season, but have rarely won tackles, interceptions, or duels.
He also hasn’t contributed enough at the other end of the pitch in the Premiership to compensate for his out-of-possession issues. Therefore, the club will need to consider a new contract to replace him in the starting line-up this month.
Celtic star should be signed instead of Reo Hatate
There is still more than a week left in the January transfer window and Celtic should use it to sign a star player from their Premiership rivals.
Sportboom reported earlier this month that the Hoops, Rangers and Hearts are all eyeing Motherwell central midfielder Elliott Watt as a target to strengthen their squads in the title race.
Looking at the 25-year-old star’s performances in the Premiership this season, it’s easy to see why three title-chasing teams will be keen to snap up the player in the coming weeks, as he has been sensational in the middle of the park.
Analyst Kai Watson even described him as “the best midfielder in the league” last month, and it’s hard to argue with that considering his impact on the game.
Among central midfielders in the Premiership this season, he ranks first for touches per game (102.9), first for total passes (1,709) and second for passes into the opposition half (695), according to Sofascore.
In addition to his excellent work in possession as a passer, Watt has four goals and two assists in 20 league games, showing he can influence games in the final third with important goal contributions.
25/26 Premiership | watt | Hatate |
|---|---|---|
game | 20 | 19 |
the goal | 4 | 1 |
assist | 2 | 2 |
Number of tackles per game | 2.2 | 0.8 |
Interceptions per game | 1.3 | 0.2 |
Ground duel success rate | 56% | 47% |
Duels won per match | 4.9 | 2.3 |
Statistics by Sofascore | ||
As you can see from the table above, the Scottish star provides his team far more in possession than Celtic’s standard-bearer in the league, winning the majority of their duels.
These statistics show that he is a reliable and strong defender even when not in possession in the middle of the park and is no lightweight in the Premiership. Unfortunately, it’s at lightweight that Hatate has excelled in hoops this season, both domestically and in Europe.
This shows both why he is a huge upgrade over the Japanese midfielder and why he is one of the best players in his position, if not the best in the league, as he is able to provide quality at all stages of play, including defensive work, progressive passing and contributing to goals.
A player of his quality across the pitch could be a huge asset to Celtic, especially as someone who is already established in the league, and his arrival could allow manager Martin O’Neill to omit the flag bearer from the starting XI.
Kyogo upgraded: 15-goal SPFL star now more likely to join Celtic than Bowie
Celtic are reportedly interested in signing the star, who is a better player than Kogo Furuhashi.
