With Tottenham Hotspur stepping up their pursuit of Ange Postecoglou, exactly how much Celtic learned from the Australian’s highly-successful two-year spell in charge may be about to be revealed.
For instance, is Postecoglou’s knowledge of Japanese football – the Celtic coach delving into a market he knows well in search of bargain buys – something those staying at Parkhead will continue with once he departs?
The former Yokohama F Marinos boss was central to the deals which saw Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda, Tomoki Iwata, Yosuke Ideguchi and Yuki Kobayashi arrive at Celtic from the Far East, and reports linking Albirex Niigata playmaker Ryotari Ito with a summer move to Scotland, via the Daily Record, has Postecoglou’s fingerprints plastered all over it.
Not just because Ito is another who has made his name in the J-League. But because the 25-year-old – a disciple of Jogo Bonito and an admirer of Ronaldinho – is exactly the sort of twinkle-toed, highly-technical playmaker perfectly suited to Postecoglou’s free-flowing, possession-based gameplan.
He is not just a typical Ange signing, but a typical Ange player too.
What does Ange Postecoglou exit mean for Celtic’s transfer plans?
“Even if I can’t score, I want to be a player who creates one big chance in every match. I think it is most important to continue this,” Ito tells Goal; as good as his word with seven goals and two assists in 15 games this season.
“(Growing up) I really liked Ronaldinho. He was a player that I definitely watched at least once a day. He’s a player I really like.
“I try to imitate and pay close attention to the footwork of Brazilian players.”
Ito also spoke openly about his interest in a move to Europe. And while Yahoo Japan do not confirm or deny that Celtic is his most likely destination at this stage, they do say that a deal to take the former Urawa Red Diamonds playmaker to the West is gathering pace.
Now, The Sun are reporting that Postecoglou could become Tottenham’s new manager as early as next week. What sort of an impact the Aussie’s departure has on Celtic’s chances of landing another J-League talent remains to be seen.
Whoever takes Postecoglou’s place is likely to come armed with his own array of transfer targets. And, unless Celtic’s next man at the helm shares the 57-year-old’s knowledge of football in the Far East, the days of raiding the J-League may be coming to an end.
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