Hoops fans will grimace at the prospect of losing all of their Japanese stars as clubs circle this summer
A penny for Kyogo’s thoughts right now as the former Celtic idol finds himself frozen out in France.
It just goes to show that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
And that should be at the forefront of Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda’s minds this summer.
Celts are braced for serious interest in their Japanese Bhoys over the coming months after stellar campaigns.
Whether the pair take a leap of faith like fellow compatriot Kyogo remains to be seen.
Locking them down on long-term deals would arguably be the best bit of business the champions could do in the coming months.
But after four trophy-laden seasons in Glasgow, Hatate and Maeda could well decide it’s time to pursue new challenges elsewhere.
And you can’t blame them.
Plucked from the Far East with no emotional attachment to Celtic, both players may well have initially viewed Scottish football as a stepping stone to bigger and better things.
Hatate has made no secret of the fact that he has a burning ambition to try his luck in one of Europe’s top five leagues.
Serie A cracks Udinese could offer him that carrot, as the Italians weigh up a big-money swoop.
At the age of 27, time is probably running out for the midfield dynamo to fulfil his dream.
And Hoops chiefs may already have decided that this year is the time to cash in while Hatate’s stock is high.
That’s from a business viewpoint. From a football perspective, Brendan Rodgers would surely want to keep the classy playmaker for as long as possible.
The same goes for 33-goal hitman Maeda.
Celtic’s Duracell Bunny has got to be one of – if not the – most unique player in world football. There’s simply no one like him.
Maeda never runs out of battery and his non-stop energy and relentless work rate sets the tone for Rodgers’ high-pressing side.
Unlike previous years, you could count on one hand the number of times the running machine has skied the ball out of the park with a wayward cross or wonky shot.
He’s added finesse to his game and a ruthless streak in front of goal that will surely have him on the radar of top clubs across the continent.
As the same age as Hatate, Maeda finds himself with a similar headache. The dad-of-two is clearly happy in Scotland and his young family are settled.
But the reality is, the fans’ favourite can double, treble or even quadruple his salary elsewhere to set his loved ones up for life.
With two years left to run on his current deal, Maeda knows the next contract offer will likely be the most lucrative of his career.
Adored by the green-and-white faithful, it would be a wrench for the cult hero – and popular Hatate – to wave goodbye.
But there’s no room for sentimentality in the game, as Kyogo proved in January by walking out mid-season for Rennes.
The striker stunned the club’s legions by upping sticks for France in a bumper £10million move.
It left punters scratching their heads. Why would Kyogo turn his back on the Champions League knockouts and the chance to complete another clean sweep, only to join a relegation scrap in Rennes?
It just didn’t make sense. And, sadly but not unsurprisingly, Kyogo has endured a miserable time at Roazhon Park.
Just days after going in the opposite direction of returning Hoops hero Jota, problems began to unravel.
Sacked boss Jorge Sampaoli – who was axed before Kyogo kicked a ball for his new club – dropped a bombshell by revealing he never sanctioned the marquee signing.
Speaking in March, the Argentine washed his hands of Kyogo and threw the Ligue 1 strugglers’ recruitment chief under the bus by blasting: “The sports director decided to make a transfer window that had nothing to do with what we needed.
“We preferred to cut the bridges. I could not represent a team which I had not chosen the players in the winter transfer window.”
By then, alarm bells were already ringing for Kyogo – who had been restricted to just 113 minutes of game time.
Fast forward to this weekend’s Ligue 1 finale away to Marseille, and Kyogo has started just one of his six appearances without finding the net.
Already, there are murmurs in east Brittany that the megabucks January capture will be offloaded in the summer after four ill-fated months.
Kyogo even found himself bombed out of the matchday squad for THREE weeks despite being fit – before being recalled at the weekend.
He was an unused sub, though, as Rennes ran out 2-0 winners against high-flying Nice.
It’s a truly baffling situation for a big game player who notched 85 goals across three-and-a-half prolific seasons at Celtic Park.
And the writing really seems to be on the wall for the 30-year-old after new boss Habib Beye admitted Kyogo simply doesn’t fit into his style of play.
He didn’t realise it at the time, but Kyogo’s move was doomed from the moment he put pen to paper with the red and blacks.
Heads will roll at Rennes this summer too, as sporting director Frederic Massara pays the price for a disastrous year in the job.
The ex-AC Milan recruitment chief is expected to be sacked after flushing the best part of £122m down the drain on transfers across two windows.
Expensive summer arrivals Jota, Albert Gronbaek, and Glen Kamara have already been shipped out.
Kyogo could be the next victim at the basket case club and may well be pining for a move back to Scotland in the coming weeks.
It serves as a potent reminder for Hatate and Maeda that all that glitters is not gold.
