However, the 26-year-old has already started two straight Scottish Premiership games against Rangers and Livingston, securing his position in midfield with Matt O’Riley and Tomoki Iwata.
Brendan Rodgers showered the trio with compliments for their performance at Ibrox, saying that under challenging circumstances, their combined effort was “absolutely outstanding.”
“The midfield trio were absolutely outstanding,” he said. Since that’s where the wins happen, the midfield is the jungle. The three of them played together. Iwata Tomo was very good. That was a lovely birthday performance from him, since he turned 27 today.
“He caught the ball and easily passed it. In the first half, Matty appeared dangerous, and Jack Butland made a fantastic stop on his header. It was a masterful save. You can see what Hate (Reo) delivers. He raises
“He allows you to progress the game and move forward, he’s creative, and in that period that he was on, he gave us real authority in the middle of the pitch. He’s only going to get fitter and stronger, and that’s only going to benefit the team.”
Truthfully, it is hard to disagree with anything Rodgers has said about Hatate, especially factoring in his ability to take risks on the ball by looking to break the lines with penetrative passing rather than playing it safe.
His first two starts have gone swimmingly since his re-emergence, and Celtic look like a way better team when he is charged with dictating the tempo in the engine room, something we will hopefully see against St Mirren this weekend.
