Celtic star Tomoki Iwata admits he cannot play as well in the Premiership as he did in the J-League. The midfielder believes ‘even the ball’ is different in Scotland than it was in Japan.
The Hoops signed Iwata from Ange Postecoglou’s former club, Yokohama F Marinos, in the January window. He arrived in Glasgow on an initial loan deal that includes an obligation to buy. The Parkhead outfit will hand the 25-year-old a long-term contract to stay at the club.
Iwata has so far featured just twice with Celtic for a total of 49 minutes across five possible fixtures. Postecoglou fielded the four-cap Japan star as a half-time substitute in the Bhoys’ SFA Cup win over Greenock Morton. He also played briefly against Livingston in the league.
Postecoglou has, instead, left Iwata as an unused substitute in three Premiership matches. He watched the action from the bench against St Mirren, Dundee United and St Johnstone in the league. The Bhoys boss has bided his time to see Iwata get up to speed and fitness.
The J-League had named Iwata as its Player of the Year for 2022 after impressing mostly as a centre-back. But the Japanese top-flight campaign finished in November. Yokohama had also only just started their pre-season camp for the 2023 season when Iwata joined Celtic.
Tomoki Iwata admits the honest ‘reality’ of the situation after his transfer to Celtic
Iwata has now admitted the challenges he has faced since his transfer to Celtic getting to grips with the Premiership. The midfielder is also not overly confident he can replicate the successes of his J-League stint in Scotland, unlike Postecoglou’s earlier J-League captures.
“It’s been about a month since I came here,” Iwata noted, via quotes by the Daily Record. “But the speed and intensity of play is different from Japan, and even the ball and pitches are all different.
“The reality is I can’t do as well as I did in Japan because we have Kyogo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate, who all start games and they all have something special that they can do… and I don’t. So, I want to gradually get used to it and play more matches.
“My strengths as a holding midfielder are tackling and breaking up moves. But in this Celtic team, you need to have something extra. Here we have players who can create the tempo of an attack and distribute passes, for example, Callum McGregor.”
Furuhashi has scored 42 and assisted nine goals in 65 games since he joined Celtic in July 2021 from Vissel Kobe for £4.5m. Maeda, meanwhile, has scored 16 and assisted 10 over 55 games. The 25-year-old stayed at Celtic for £1.5m after an initial loan from Yokohama.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
