Reo Hatate's comments raise doubts over his Celtic future | OneFootball

International breaks can often highlight many Celtic players as they get called up or left out of their national team squads. We often see players getting injured while away or those out on loan getting time for their country. It can often be quite a mixed bag of news, as Reo Hatate has found out while away with Japan.

So far in the current international break, we have seen some players who haven't featured much for Celtic this season making headlines for their national teams. Anthony Ralston had a good display for Scotland in their win in Greece on Thursday night. Luis Palma, currently on loan at Olympiacos, scored again for Honduras in a 5-3 win over Bermuda.

Elsewhere, the big focus is on Japan, now the first team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. They have Hatate and Daizen Maeda in their squad, but both were not brought on in the first match against Bahrain.

In Maeda’s case, that may have been a preference to rest him after a bruising encounter against the Rangers. For Hatate, though, he frustratingly didn't make the Japan bench. The forward did start the second game, a 0-0 draw on Tuesday against Saudi Arabia. On the other hand, the midfielder did make a substitute appearance after 72 minutes.

Reo Hatate's comments raise doubts over his Celtic future

The selection decisions by Japan boss Hajime Moriyasu might make Hatate think deeply about his future, but he needs to consider other things too. He must be mindful of his former Celtic teammate Kyogo Furuhashi who made a move to Rennes in January, aiming to improve his World Cup selection prospects.

Oddly enough, despite Kyogo barely featuring for Rennes, he was called into the Japan squad this time. He too was left out in the cold for the Bahrain match, but also made a substitute appearance alongside Hatate towards the end of the second game on Tuesday.

Hatate seems keen to be part of the squad for the World Cup Finals next year. As reported by the Daily Record, he said:

Of course, many factors suggest remaining in Glasgow could be a wise move and still help Hatate impress Moriyasu. Featuring in the Champions League and performing well being one of those.

Hatate should also note that Maeda doesn't seem to be affected by the same Premiership player tag for Japan. Then there are the tales of two other players he knows well who found that the grass isn't as green as it looks away from Parkhead.