Kyogo Furuhashi Makes Key Celtic Admission After Japan Benching

Celtic striker Kyogo Furuhashi has admitted he still needs to score more goals for the Hoops despite bing called up by Japan this international break.

The 29-year-old was picked by boss Hajime Moriyasu for the first time in over a year for the November internationals.

The Samurai Blue faced Indonesia last Friday and emphatically won 4-0. Kyogo’s club teaMMAtes Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda were both given minutes from the bench, but the centre-forward remained a sub for the Game’s entirety.

He will look to get an opportunity against China tomorrow as Japan continue their qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup.

Kyogo, though, knows that minutes don’t come at the drop of a hat. Speaking to Japanese outlet Soccer Magazine (via RecordSport), the attacker admitted he has to get better at club level: “I still have a lot to improve on in terms of the number of goals I score,” he said.

“The national team has been in really good form, so I thought I had to be a player who could make a difference.

“I’d like to play the kind of Football that the national team’s Moriyasu plays and show my strengths.”

After they return from the Far East, Kyogo, Maeda, and Hatate’s attention turns to what Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has described as an ‘ultramarathon’ run of fixtures.

The Scottish Premiership champions kick things off this Saturday when they Travel to Tynecastle to face Hearts, a ground they lost at on their last visit.

The Celts will look to reverse a 2-0 scoreline from that day and continue where they left off before the international break.