Is the Japanese national coach just messing the Celtic players around now?

For many in the Celtic support, international breaks are met with frustration. It’s not that we don’t want our players representing their countries, but there’s always the concern that they’ll pick up injuries while playing for a cause that isn’t ours.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow when a player returns from international duty and ends up missing key fixtures at Celtic Park due to no fault of the club.

Now, I’m one of those rare folks who, while absolutely hating international weeks, actually enjoys seeing our players get the call-up. It’s a badge of honour to play for your country and a mark of respect to Celtic and the Scottish Premiership when our players are selected. Yet, there’s one glaring exception in my view: players heading off to represent Japan.

As regular readers will know, I have a real issue with how Japan’s national coach treats Celtic and the Scottish game. It’s as if he doesn’t respect our league, and he certainly doesn’t seem to respect some of our players. Daizen Maeda is the only one who seems to get any real recognition, but even this manager can’t afford to overlook him.

Kyogo, on the other hand, apparently doesn’t make the cut, which raises serious questions about the manager’s eye for talent. And now, we have Reo Hatate being dragged halfway around the world, seemingly for no reason.

The situation with the Japan coach feels like a constant headache for Celtic, as if he’s messing with our players just because he can. While I wish our players didn’t feel the need to go play for him, I understand why they do. For Japanese footballers, pulling on the national jersey is a huge honour, something no player would want to give up.

If Celtic ever tried to stop them, it would be seen as a major insult, and it’s not something the club would ever do. That said, there’s no honour in the way the Japan coach is handling things.

Hatate, for instance, seems to be on a pointless journey across the globe, gaining nothing for his efforts. Celtic can’t be happy with the situation, and the player himself seems to be putting on a brave face, though it’s clear he’s not thrilled.

Still, he’s likely trying to focus on the silver lining that at least he’s being picked, unlike Kyogo, who has been inexplicably ignored for some time. I can’t shake the feeling, though, that Hatate will be relieved when this particular manager no longer controls his international future.

When we first started bringing in players from Asia, we knew it would present challenges. The travel schedule is brutal, and their international commitments can seriously disrupt the season, as we saw with the Asian Cup. Last year, the coach’s refusal to pick Kyogo worked in our favour, as we had him at home. But in another year, it could hurt us. Yet, we’d be a weaker side without our Asian contingent, and that’s the trade-off we accept.

Still, it’s a gamble. When you have so many key players from that part of the world, you’re inevitably going to face complications that don’t arise with European-based players. That’s why some of us are actually a bit relieved that Hatate, although sent on these long-haul trips, isn’t being used in games. At least it reduces the injury risk.

But no one will convince me that flying halfway around the world for training sessions doesn’t carry its own risks, because it absolutely does.

In Hatate’s case, I’d honestly prefer if he wasn’t selected at all under this coach. If you’re going to subject players to that sort of travel and physical strain, then either play them or don’t bother. I’m sure Hatate feels the same. He’s likely finding these trips exhausting, draining, and utterly pointless—and that’s bound to have an impact on his performances for us.

As I said, I’m not one of those who zealously believes all our players should avoid international duty. In general, I’m pleased when they’re picked, even if they don’t always play. But this Japan situation feels different. It’s hard to shake the growing sense that this national coach is simply messing us around. And frankly, I wouldn’t be sorry if our players decided to sit out any further games whilst he’s in charge. It’s not doing them any good.