Frank McAvennie reckons that Kyogo Furuhashi sustaining a shoulder injury against St Mirren could actually be good for Celtic when they face off in the Viaplay League Cup Final against our fierce rivals this month. The small forward took a rather awkward looking fall to the floor in our Scottish Cup tie last weekend and has had to go for a scan since.
We still don’t know yet the full extent of that particular injury or if he will be available to play in the League Cup Final against theRangers come the 26 February. The player has suffered from this same type of injury before, with the Japan international being singled out by the opposition on several occasions during his time in Scottish football.
In September he was on the receiving end of a hefty challenge from the newest Ibrox club’s modern day Terrence Hurlock – John Lundstram. The hammer-thrower is always looking to kick and harass our talented players every time we face-off and it’s hardly surprising that Beale hopes to have him back for the final itself.
However, Frank McAvennie has been telling Football Insider that despite the blow that Kyogo might be on the sidelines for the game a week on Sunday, it could be a blessing in disguise as we find out just what Hyeongyu Oh is all about. The South Korean got off the mark this past Saturday night and vowed it will be the first of many, which was reported by The Celtic Star too.
Being thrown into a cup final against our most loathsome foe would be quite the baptism of fire for the budding goalscorer, but McAvennie is confident he could relish such a challenge if Ange Postecoglou lays down the gauntlet before him in a couple of weeks time. He said: This next game will get him used to what is expected of him.
“I liked him. I was at Tannadice a couple of weeks ago when he came on. The fans loved him and he played to the crowd. He just did what everyone expected, he chased his socks off. He got his first goal at Celtic Park which is always great. I won’t be too disappointed because I think he would give [Ben] Davies and [Connor] Goldson a bit of a game. But I hope that Kyogo is fit.”
The former Celtic striker also added that the ex-Suwon Bluewings centre-forward will have the upper hand when it comes to facing Mick Beale’s men, as the defensive unit across the city will never have experienced what it’s like to play against big Oh. “If he does not play for the next two weeks or so he might be ok and we could get a half out of him, McAvennie said. “TheRangers do not know much about Oh so they do not know how to handle him. They know how to handle Kyogo so that could go in our favour.”
Paul Gillespie
