Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers insists he is not fearing a raid of his squad from Ange Postecoglou’s new Premier League employers with Kyogo Furuhashi one of those reportedly on Tottenham Hotspur radar.
Whether they were comments made in hope or in expectation, Hoops legend Chris Sutton certainly sounded like a man convinced when he told BBC Radio 5 Live earlier this month that Ange Postecoglou would not come a-knocking on the Parkhead door.
The former Celtic boss, Sutton predicted, would not risk ruining his Glaswegian legacy by attempting to lure the likes of Kyogo Furuhashi, Jota or Reo Hatate south of the border.
Tottenham boss Ange Posteocoglou is a big Kyogo fan
Although, if his two-year spell at Parkhead was anything to go by, Postecoglou’s transfer policy revolves quite a bit around players he knows and trusts.
He had worked with Daizen Maeda and Aaron Mooy previously before reuniting with both at Celtic. Former Vissel Kobe star Kyogo, meanwhile, was one of many J-League imports to arrive under the one-time Yokohama F Marinos boss.
And, according to The Sun, the £20 million-rated Kyogo is a player Postecoglou may turn to again, particularly as Bayern Munich step up their interest with a formal offer for wantaway skipper Harry Kane.
Not that Brendan Rodgers is losing any sleep just yet, however.
“Listen, when you’ve got top players, they are always going to attract attention elsewhere,” the former Liverpool and Leicester City coach says, in quotes reported by The Standard.
“I don’t worry about that.”
Kyogo was Celtic’s 34-goal top scorer last term as the Hoops completed a fifth domestic treble in eight years.
Him staying put will be key to Rodgers’ hopes of holding off a Rangers charge next term, with targets such as Marco Tilio and Yang Hyun-Jun lined up in the hope of starring alongside – rather than in place of – Furuhashi.
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