Ange Postecoglou was full of praise for Reo Hatate after Celtic’s 2-1 victory over Motherwell at the weekend.
The Japanese midfielder hit a terrific strike from the edge of the penalty box that flew past Liam Kelly to double the Hoops lead.
Celtic had taken to the lead through Kyogo Furuhashi before the goal was cancelled out after a howler of an own goal.
The Scottish champions created plenty of opportunities throughout the game but as time dragged on many were hoping that it wouldn’t have been one of those days.
Emotions at the end of the game for Hatate were mixed having played a poor ball back into defence that led to Celtic captain Callum McGregor being sent off by John Beaton.
It was crucial that the Scotland international made the foul with the Steelmen being given a total gift that could have cost Celtic the points.
The 24-year old was snubbed by his international boss Hajime Moriyasu for Japan’s friendly matches against the USA and Ecuador in Dusseldorf. Hatate was hoping he would be given some minutes to try and make an impression before the World Cup in December.
Although emotions may have been mixed for the Celtic midfielder, Postecoglou was happy overall with his performance. The Celtic manager wanted to lend some context to the player’s career so far.
“He was good today. He was unlucky first half with his strike as well [that hit the post]. Reo’s developing well, he’s a player who has still got a hell of a lot of potential,” said Ange Postecoglou speaking to Football Scotland.
“I try to explain to people his background, like a lot of Japanese players he only came out of university at 22. He’s only really been a professional footballer for three-odd years.
“So, I kind of knew after the impact he had in his first year as a professional that if it was his baseline he was going to improve.”
He has so far impressed in the Champions League this season and was a vitally important player during the second half of last season, writing his name into Celtic folklore with two goals during his first derby appearance.
