Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou guided his rampant side to victory over Hearts on Wednesday evening in what was the 57-year-old’s 100th game in charge of the Old Firm outfit, with the Hoops coming from behind to seal a 3-1 win at Parkhead.
That triumph – which was the Greek-Aussie’s 74th win of his tenure thus far – has ensured that the Glasgow giants remain nine points above bitter rivals Rangers at the summit, with the Scottish champions looking rather imperious in the pursuit of their league crown.
On that landmark night for the experienced coach, Postecoglou was largely left to thank prolific marksman Kyogo Furuhashi for powering the Bhoys to three points, with the Japan international having simply stolen the show once again in attack.
How did Kyogo perform against Hearts?
With the hosts having suffered an early setback as Josh Ginelly fired Robbie Neilson’s men ahead inside six minutes, up stepped Kyogo to drag his side back into the game, with the 28-year-old producing a stunning, driven cross to tee up compatriot Daizen Maeda at the back post, with the latter man duly prodding home for his tenth goal of the season in all competitions.
That crucial assist had seen the former Vissel Kobe ace showcase his relentless dynamism to latch onto Anthony Ralston’s threaded pass down the flanks, with that expert movement having again been evident as the £19k-per-week man then completed the turnaround on the hour mark.
The diminutive striker showed “ridiculous movement” – in the words of journalist John McGinley – to make space for himself inside the area, before powering his fierce effort past a helpless Zander Clark following a typically pin-point pass from playmaker, Aaron Mooy.
Those two moments of magic – which were followed by a late stunner from substitute Sead Haksabanovic – further rubberstamped the 5 foot 7 gem’s importance to Postecoglou’s side, having again proven himself a truly “clever player”, as per journalist Liam O’Hare.
It is also remarkable that the 16-cap speedster was able to make such an impact despite having largely been on the periphery of the game, as he made just a solitary pass and was restricted to just 14 touches in total in his 70-minute outing – fewer than teammate Joe Hart recorded in the sticks (39).
Even after that starring role – which saw Kyogo record the highest match rating on the night of 7.8, as per Sofascore – Postecoglou was clearly frustrated at the inability to get the in-form asset further involved in proceedings, having stated post-match:
“Kyogo makes fantastic runs and sometimes I get really frustrated that after 18-20 months we still don’t see them. Could he be doing even more damage? Absolutely.
“We didn’t use him well but the beauty of it is that he doesn’t get frustrated, he keeps making those runs.”
It is a credit to the ‘electric’ talent – as described by Glasgow Live’s Matthew Fulton – that he is still able to steal the limelight even with his opportunities restricted, although it is a mouthwatering prospect to think that a player who already boasts 20 Scottish Premiership goals this season could be ‘doing even more damage’.
The rest of the division, beware…
