Celtic progressed to the next round of the SFA Cup on Saturday thanks to a narrow 2-1 win over Scottish Premiership rivals Kilmarnock at Parkhead.
Callum McGregor and Daizen Maeda scored for the home side to ensure they progressed in the competition, either side of a Bobby Wales equaliser.
The Hoops made their job more difficult than they should have been by missing several opportunities to find the back of the net and put the game out of sight.
67Hail Hail criticized center forward Kyoga Furuhashi because he is ‘guilty’ of throwing away scoring chances in the game, which has been a constant theme throughout the season.
The struggles of Kyoga Furuhashi this season
The Japanese representative has scored ten goals in 22 Premiership appearances this term and offers a constant threat upfield with his movement and instincts in front of goal.
However, his lack of quality in the final action was a problem, as the former Vissel Kobe star failed to capitalize on the quality opportunities the team created for him.
|
Kyogo Furuhashi (24/25) |
Premiership |
Champions League |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
22 |
6 |
|
xG |
14.14 |
2.07 |
|
Objectives |
10 |
1 |
|
Big chances were missed |
17 |
3 |
As you can see in the table above, Kyogo has fallen well short of expected output, with 11 goals from 16.21 xG in the Premiership and Champions League combined.
Brendan Rodgers could stick with the experienced striker and hope his form in front of goal improves, but the January transfer window also presents the boss with an opportunity to potentially sign an upgrade to the Japanese striker.
Celtic was recently related to interest in Lille, center forward Mohamed Bayo, who wants to find regular playing time in the second part of the season, and his finishing ability could improve the team.
Focus transfer
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big name failures. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across the Football FanCast.
Why Celtic should sign Mohamed Bay
The 26-year-old star, once described as one of the “best players in Africa” European football expert Zach Lowyjoined Lille from Clermont Foot in the summer of 2022 and has only started 25 times in Ligue 1 from the start of the 2022/23 season, which shows that he has not had regular minutes to show his quality in front of goal.
He scored two goals of 2.02 xG in three league starts for Lille so far this season, making the most of the opportunities that came his way, but his best form came during his days with Clermont Foot.
In the 2021/22 campaign. – the last time he made more than 20 league starts – Bayo scored 14 goals and has missed just 11 ‘big chances’ in 27 Ligue 1 starts, which speaks to the clinical finishing he can provide at his best.
A Guinean international, who is respected £3.4m according to Transfermarkthe has shown his quality in the big European league, but has not been able to repeat it in recent years due to a lack of minutes.
Bayo, who scored 22 goals in 34 starts in the 2020/21 Ligue 2 campaign, he is an effective finisher, as his stats show, and that suggests he has the potential to come in as an upgrade to Kyog if Rodgers can get him back into the prime.
Connected
The Lille outcast may just need a string of regular games, which he hasn’t had at his current club, to return to form from Clermont Foot, which is why the Celtic target could be an excellent addition and potential upgrade for Kyogo, given his relentless nature in front of goal.
