THE summer transfer period is advancing rapidly with more and more clubs actively signing players. One of them is Premiership champion Celtic, which has been pretty busy in the last couple of weeks. This club managed to sign six players during this transfer window.
One of Celtic’s signings this month was a 23-year-old Japanese left-sided defender from Albirex Niigata called Hayato Inamura. But, after the clubs finalised the transfer, Celtic’s manager Brendan Rodgers gave a statement that surprised all fans. It was an unexpected twist even for non-Celtic supporters.
What’s the U-Turn in Inamura’s Transfer to Celtic?
After Celtic announced the signing of Hayato Inamura, Brendan Rodgers revealed a surprising u-turn. He said that the Japanese defender won’t be part of the first team.
The thing is that Inamura is 23 years old and he would probably be the oldest player in the B team. Not including him in the first team even surprised numerous football punters, especially those from Scotland.
Now, we should note that Inamura’s situation can still change in the near future. This comes after the defender’s impressive performance in the first half of the pre-season friendly against Cork City and the 4-0 win over Newcastle United on Saturday. Following the match in Ireland, the manager said that his early statement wasn’t fixed.
Rodgers stated that he would bring him on during pre-season and see how he performs. He admitted that he judges his players on how they look and whether they are capable before the season starts.
The manager praised Inamura’s first few training sessions noting that he’s smooth with the ball and plays forward. He said that he has the personality to take the ball and play out an attack. It’s a skill that big clubs like Celtic require of their players.
Rodgers also admitted that Inamura did surprise him. He and his staff knew that he would come and they felt that it may be more settling for him to start playing.
Then, the manager, who admitted Celtic “need to improve”, said that it was obvious that he’s inexperienced. It’s not uncommon for Japanese players to go to university and not turn pro until the age of 23 or 24, so maybe Rodgers has a point. Inamura will need to adapt physically to compete at Celtic and play in Europe.
Who Is Hayato Inamura?
Hayato Inamura is a 23-year-old Japanese defender who joined Celtic from J-League side Albirex Niigata. The Premiership champions reportedly paid £250,000 for his signature.
This player is 1.82 meters tall, which isn’t a big height for a player in his position. But, he’s very good with the ball, which is up to the standards of modern defence. This has to do with the positions he played early on in his career. Inamura started as a right-winger, but he also played as a defensive midfielder.
It’s interesting to note that Inamura began his professional career with Albirex Niigata last season. For this club, he played 36 matches in all competitions, during which he scored once and assisted two times. He even received just 3 yellow cards, which is a pretty decent stat for that many appearances.
Albirex Niigata signed Inamura from Toyo University, which, as the name indicates, is a college football team. He played for Toyo from 2021 until 2024. In his young career, this defender was part of clubs like Gekkouhara SC, FC Tokyo Fukagawa, and Maebashi Ikuei High School.
All Other Celtic Signings So Far
Despite the u-turn with Hayato Inamura, Celtic also signed 4 other players. These signings, alongside the core of proven champions looking to defend their title, have the edge over Rangers to win the Scottish Premiership once more. Those betting online at NetBet, William Hill or Bet365 will get the shortest odds on Celtic to lift the trophy again next summer, even with the confusion around Imamura’s place in the team.
One of them is Benjamin Nygren, a 24-year-old Swedish right-winger who joined the club from FC Nordsjaelland. Celtic paid around £2 million for his signature and fans see it as a bargain.
Next up, we have Kieran Tierney, who joined from Arsenal on a free transfer. This 28-year-old left-back decided to return home after a difficult spell in London. He was part of the club from 2005 until 2019, before leaving for Arsenal. Now, he’s ready to turn his career around at his beloved boyhood club.
Celtic also signed Ross Doohan on a free transfer from Aberdeen. He’s 27 years of age and plays as a goalkeeper. This is another player who made his first football steps at Celtic. However, he will probably be a backup as Kasper Schmeichel will surely remain the first goalkeeper choice.
Another player to join Celtic during this transfer window is Callum Osmand from Fulham. He’s a 19-year-old striker who also signed a deal for free.
Osmand comes in with some pretty good stats at Fulham’s U18 and U21 teams. In total, he managed to score 43 and assist 12 goals in 73 matches. Let’s see if his good form continues in his professional career.
And Rodgers brought his arrivals to six when striker Shin Yamada sealed his £1.3million move from J-League outfit Kawasaki Frontale at the weekend.
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