Celtic Reopen New Contract Talks With Key Player

Celtic have done a good job getting players to agree to contract extensions in recent months. The likes of Kyogo, Daizen Maeda, Stephen Welsh, Callum McGregor and Liel Abada have all penned new deals with the Scottish champions.

There is another player whom they have been interested in handing a new deal to. But until now, there has not been a breakthrough in that regard. In fact, talks had been put on hold for a while.

The player is Reo Hatate. The Japanese midfielder has been a vital part of the club's successes over the past season-and-a-half since he joined in January 2022.

So, it is only natural that Celtic want to agree a contract extension with Hatate, especially with the number of clubs being linked with him.

It is because of that interest that contract extension talks were put on hold for a while. But now, they seem to be back on the table.

According to The Mail+, Celtic have opened talks with Hatate. The player had asked for discussions to be placed on hold until the summer transfer window closed. Conversations finally got underway this week.

Hopefully Celtic and Hatate will be successful in reaching an agreement this time. It is important that the Japanese midfielder remains in Glasgow for the foreseeable future.

At times, he has seemed like a class apart. In fact, he is one of the Celtic players who appears to be Champions League level when in full flow.

Hatate has faced some struggles since the appointment of Brendan Rodgers as manager. We just have not seen the best of the Japanese midfielder this season.

Many fans had even questioned his body language in pre-season. Then he picked up an injury early on in the season.

One has to wonder how much of an effect the constant transfer speculation had on Hatate. Now with the summer window closed, one would hope to see the best of him on the pitch, once he makes his return from injury.