Yesterday, I read a great set of stats on how Kyogo Furuhashi is on course to be one of the fastest players ever to hit 50 goals for our club. A guy did an amazing piece of internet research to find out who the players who have, since 1996-97, done it before the end of their second season and that’s only two players on that timeline. A few have been close.
This, of course, is amazing.
Celtic needs to be focussed on making sure that he is here to score 100. If he stays beyond next season I am certain that we will watch him do it in near record time. He is definitely the best striker we’ve had here since The King of Kings, and he does it when it matters. Cup finals, games against the other lot, at massive moments which change matches.
I always thought Edouard would hit 100. I knew for a fact that if we kept Dembele here for long enough he was going to smash it.
Right now Kyogo is on 48 goals. On the timeline in question, the record is actually held at the moment by Gary Hooper on 51. Scott McDonald is second on 50. Hartson had 49. Dembele is tied with Kyogo on 48 … but Kyogo has many more games to go to get over the line and beat Hooper’s score. And I think he’s going to do it.
For context, Henrik was on 45 goals at the end of his second season. He went, of course, to score 242 goals for our club … Kyogo won’t get to that but he can get 100 and then see where he ends up. 150 is certainly not out of reach, a milestone in itself.
Only ten players in our history have hit that goal tally. Ten. Thirty have scored 100 but 150 goals is a very big achievement indeed, and the little guy is more than good for it.
But 50 first and then that 100, and he’ll get there is the club holds onto him. That’s the real issue here. That’s where the focus of all those in the background should be.
I’ve got a feeling that he may be off this Summer. There will be a lot of interest in him and at the age of 28, if Celtic want to make a decent profit on him, then this is the time to do it. I hope I am wrong.
Can understand that with the quality kyogo has, yet I don’t actually see him wanting to move either.
When a player like kyogo has made such a connection with the support, how much money is going to buy him nothing else he will ever experience within the game ever again?
The international situation doesn’t make any sense surrounding him, but still would be surprised for that becoming a factor for him wanting to leave, especially when the Japanese manager is putting his own job on the line in excluding kyogo along with hatate.
Becoming so unplayable around the box now that trying to take him out,off the ball well outside the box seems to be the only defending tactic available to the carthorse defender’s now.
A player so well suited for our hoops and long may it continue
The ideal scenario would be for Celtic to write off his original fee and to encourage him to stay with us for the rest of his career.
I too, like you James, hope we see the Japanese gem stay waaaaaaay beyond the hundred mark.
But the reality is money talks and players walk. If the right bid comes in for him for the club and the player is agreeable to it then he will go. Another thing to take into account is Kyogos nationality. Japanese are very patriotic and the pinnacle for them in all they do is representing their country where possible, no matter how much Kyogo loves the club if he feels that being in our league is detrimental to his national prospects he will go.
I’ll use an excellent example of a player I’m glad you chose to mention in your piece. Gary Hooper. Another wonderful natural talent we had at the club. In my opinion up there beside Kyogo as the best we’ve had since the dreadlocked destroyer.
By all accounts he was extremely happy at the club during his time there, but it was the desire to represent Engerlund (he almost got there) and his opinion that to gain further recognition and increase his prospects he needed to move to the EPL. He had fierce competition of course, where this differs for Kyogo a bit and is much more in our favour as a club. I hope Ange leans a bit more on Moriyasu’s shoulders and swing’s the dilemma in our favour and we see our magical gem give us the best part of his career. God bless you all. Have a great day! HH.