Brendan Rodgers – Reasons for Kyogo leaving and sensational Jota return

Q: Was there a reason, Brendan? You said that he expressed he wanted to leave a while ago. Was there a specific reason? Just a new challenge? What did Kyogo say to you or to the club?

Brendan Rodgers: “I think it’s a great place to be. But their careers are short. He’s 30 years of age now. And they want these new challenges. He’s achieved so much here at Celtic. But that opportunity at this time in his career to go into what would be one of the top five leagues was something that was maybe too good for him to turn down. But I think it was more just something new for him. A new challenge. He’s obviously loved the club. He’s loved everything about being here. But players’ careers are short. As much as we want to convince them to stay and be here, the minute they want to move and the representatives say they want to move, then we have to do the best for the club.”

Q: Brendan, was it just one of those things? I think Kyogo was really disappointed to miss out on international squads at times. I think that was one of the things mentioned from the Japan camp, that the Scottish league wasn’t challenging enough. Is that just one of the things that’s out of control of Celtic and maybe other clubs in Scotland as well?

Brendan Rodgers: “Listen, you can achieve many things here at Celtic. It might not be one of the top five leagues in the world, but this is a league where you can really develop and show your talent at the very highest level. When I arrived here, Kyogo hadn’t scored a goal in the Champions League. And if he leaves, he’s then shown that he can play at that level. But when he first came in, he was adapting to the game and did exceptionally well for Ange (Postecoglou). And then he continued with that work and now leaves as a player who has shown he can play at the very highest level. Now, the Japanese squad has obviously many really good players in them. But I think that you can show that by being here and winning and playing the type of football that we play and playing at the highest level, you can still achieve everything that you would like to. But obviously, naturally, there’s a feeling that when you’ve been somewhere, you may want to move on. It might be the weather. Maybe the weather just wasn’t quite what you wanted! But either way, he’s been a brilliant servant for us.”

Q: Obviously, we saw Adam [Idah], and how lifted he was by his role on the goal the other night as well. Do you think maybe having this extra responsibility for the next while will bring him on as well and help him?

Brendan Rodgers: “I think with Adam, like it is with every other player, we have to offer the time, the patience, the support. And we know the talents there. He’s already shown that in his time here. But yeah, you get through a run of games, and you don’t quite score. But I think his impact and run – that’s why I think we look for more than one quality striker. You need to be able to change up the game in the modern game now isn’t about the starting 11 and then playing the whole 90 minutes – Especially with the number of games that we play. I thought the first half of the other night, we were very, very good in the game, then we probably tired a little bit in the second half. Naturally, with so many games that we’re playing, plus the likes of Young Boys who had three, or four weeks off. So, they come into it a little bit in the second half. But that possibility to change the squad and have quality players on the side, to bring them in – that gives us the opportunity to get that winning goal. Strikers will always want to score goals. But for me, it’s always about the collective. Obviously, if Kyogo ends up finishing his deal, we’ll have to look to bring in another quality player in that position.”

Q: If Kyogo does leave and Jota comes in, is it in your mind perhaps to maybe play Daizen through the middle? It’s obviously a role that he knows very well from the national team.

Brendan Rodgers: “He can do that, but I would still want to bring in another striker. I think he can play there. If you look at Daizen’s numbers, I’m not sure exactly what they are. But when he arrived here, he came in here with something like 23 goals in 30-odd games. So, he’s a different profile of striker. But in the two games I’ve played him in as a striker, he’s scored five goals as a striker. At Yokohama, he scored a hat-trick, and then earlier in the season against Hibs when Kyogo didn’t play, he scored two goals and was a threat. So, he will get goals. What’s been really nice is to see the numbers that he’s able to get off the side. But I still think that we would need another striker. Definitely, we would want to bring in someone else.”

CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE…