Plenty have tried, not many have succeeded.
That is Scottish Premiership clubs and their attempts to keep Celtic superstar Daizen Maeda quiet.
The Japanese buzzbomb is player of the year, surely, with his 30 goal tally and nine assists throughout the campaign. And that’s not including the hattrick Maeda promised vs St Johnstone.
Saints’ boss Simo Valakari is under no illusions how good Maeda has been this term for the Hoops and he knows the 27-year-old is one of if not the biggest threat his side have to silence.
Simo Valakari knows St Johnstone must crowd Celtic’s Maeda
It won’t be easy with Maeda in such a rich vein of form and continuously chasing more Celtic records. But Valakari knows he’ll have to have a plan in place.
“What a player but it’s Celtic’s collective structure that brings the best out of the players,” Valakari said before Sunday’s clash at McDiarmid Park.
“You need to be tight with him, but how is it possible because you go too tight, he will exploit the space.
If you let him run freely, he will exploit the space but it’s about communications, and one-versus-one defending, it’s a skill of picking up in the box where he makes his movements.
“As a defender you want to have these challenges. You want to play against maybe the player of the year and say, okay, let’s see what he does, how I can try to stop him?
What Celtic teammates have said about Maeda’s form
That is the question, of course, but Maeda won’t be stifled without a fight.
The attacker has flourished as Celtic’s main striker through the middle and his teammates are also benefiting. Nicolas Kuhn told how he’s found Maeda as a frontman while Callum McGregor was full of praise.
Jota, too, spoke on Maeda and how far the player has come this season in front of goal.
Tam McManus even felt this weekend that Maeda could “outgrow” Celtic with Premier League clubs down south surely circling.
Maeda is Celtic’s top player this year and all the gongs should be his at the end of it all.
