Rangers legend Ally McCoist admits that he is a big fan of Kyogo Furuhashi after the Celtic talisman scored the winner in Thursday’s Scottish Premiership triumph over Hearts, speaking to talkSPORT (3 December, 9am).
Eyebrows were certainly raised on the green half of Glasgow when Celtic sold Odsonne Edouard to Crystal Palace and brought in a little-known Japan international from the faraway land of the Far East as his successor.
But, netting his 14th of the season with a controversial strike against Heart of Midlothian at Parkhead, Kyogo is now well on track to beat Edouard’s 2020/21 tally as Ange Postecoglou’s free-scoring, free-flowing side go head-to-head with their Old Firm rivals for the Premiership title.
The £4.6 million Celtic paid to take Kyogo away from Vissel Kobe is now starting to look like one of the best bargain signings in the club’s recent history.
Is Kyogo Furuhashi the best footballer in Scotland?
“The wee boy’s a player isn’t he, Kyogo,” admits McCoist, the former Rangers striker and manager.
“I like Kyogo a lot. I think he’s quick, he scores goals, he plays on the shoulder of centre-backs really well. I must admit, I fancy him.”
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Rangers secured a rather contentious one-goal victory themselves this week, Ryan Kent’s winning a dubious penalty to leave Hibernian boss Jack Ross spitting feathers.
Celtic’s latest triumph 24 hours later, however, means the gap between the two Glasgow rivals stands at just four points heading into a hectic festive fixture schedule.
Interestingly, the Hoops are expected to add two more J-League stars to their squad in the winter window.
The prolific Daizen Maeda could arrive from Postecoglou’s old employers Yokohama F Marinos while Reo Hatate is close to join on a free transfer from Kawasaki Frontale, as reported by The Athletic.
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