KYOGO FURUHASHI was one game away from winning his second successive Premiership title this time last year.
Celtic’s Japanese international striker was also just one strike adrift of the praiseworthy 30-goal mark.
Furuhashi and his team-mates were gearing up for a crucial championship confrontation against Hearts at Tynecastle on Sunday afternoon May 7. They knew a win over the Edinburgh club would deliver a second crown in Ange Postecoglou’s reign.
Yet again, the pacy frontman didn’t fail on the big occasion as he swept the visitors into a 68th-minute lead with a typical near-post finish after a clever pass from Reo Hatate.
HIGHS…Kyogo Furuhashi celebrates another goal for Celtic.
LOWS…Kyogo can’t hide his disappointment as another one gets away.
As the ball settled in the net behind the helpless Zander Clark, the prolific Celt celebrated the barrier-breaking strike which also took him to a half-century of goals since arriving in Glasgow in a bargain £4.6million move from J-League Vissel Kobe in July 2021.
Oh Hyeon-gyu, a replacement for the marksman shortly after his deadly finish, netted the clinching goal in the 2-0 triumph that earned the Hoops their eleventh crown in 12 seasons.
Just three days from the 12-month anniversary, Kyogo is poised to go in against the same opponents in the east end of Glasgow this afternoon.
On this occasion, the international hitman is struggling for consistency, as his meagre goal haul of 16 for the season emphasises.
It’s an alarming drop in the player’s scoring rate that has baffled many observers.
The 29-year-old forward completed the previous crusade with a well-merited 34 goals as he brought down the curtain in expected style with the opener in the 3-1 Scottish Cup Final triumph over Inverness Caley Thistle at Hampden on June 3.
CROWNING GLORY…Kyogo Furuhashi swoops to beat Hearts keeper Zander Clark to pave the way for Celtic’s title success at Tynecastle last season.
In his debut campaign, Kyogo netted 20 – and that was after being ruled out for a total of FOUR MONTHS with two separate injuries.
At the moment, the fans’ favourite has four league games and a Scottish Cup showpiece encounter to boost his present tally.
Questions have been asked in recent times about Kyogo who has made way for on-loan Norwich City powerhouse Adam Idah on a few occasions.
Parkhead today could provide the perfect platform for the popular Celt to fire back at his critics.
Go get ’em, Kyogo!
ALEX GORDON
*DON’T miss the unbeatable match report from Celtic v Hearts this afternoon – only in your champion CQN.
