Sunday marks Celtic’s return to action in the Scottish Premiership as they get ready to leave Parkhead and visit Fir Park to play Motherwell.
Rangers play before the Hoops this Saturday, so they might enter the game with a five-point advantage in first place, but if their opponents lose points, they could have a chance to overtake them at the top of the standings.
The Gers’ opportunity to move up to the top was made possible by Brendan Rodgers’ team, as they had not played well against Kilmarnock in the Premiership.
David Watson’s equaliser in stoppage time in Glasgow gave the visiting club a point after Kyogo Furuhashi had given the Bhoys the lead in the first half.
Japan international Daizen Maeda was one player that failed against Kilmarnock last weekend; as a result, he needs to be mercilessly benched to make room for January arrival Nicolas Kuhn.
The 26-year-old forward didn’t have much of an impact on the game despite being chosen to play on the right side of the attack with Kyogo and Adam Idah through the middle and Luis Palma on the left.
After 68 minutes, Rodgers made the decision to substitute Maeda for the newly returned from international service with his country, citing the winger’s lacklustre performance.
Throughout the game, the right-footed lightweight lost four of his six ground duels and one of his two aerial clashes when out of possession, making it all too easy for the opposition to take advantage of him.
In 68 minutes, Anthony Ralston had made zero tackles, interceptions, blocks, or clearances; he did little to support the attacker at right-back.
Maeda’s poor performance off the ball was matched by his inability to generate enough quality play at the top of the pitch to help his team win.
The table above shows that the opposition goal was not threatened by the Japan international. He did little to aid his teammates put pressure on Will Dennis between the sticks and gave the custodian nothing to work with.
The number 38 for the Hoops has not impressed, failing to score goals or provide assists for the Scottish powerhouses on a regular basis while playing on the wing.
Maeda has only managed three goals in 19 league games, and the dreg has wasted eight “big chances” in front of goal, demonstrating how lacking in finishing ability he is.
The fact that the inefficient attacker has more than twice as many huge chances squandered as goals scored indicates that the forward has not taken full advantage of the opportunities that his teammates have generated for him.
He hasn’t shown remarkable inventiveness to make up for his lacklustre performance. In his 19 Premiership games, the Japanese jewel has only contributed two assists; four other strikers in the division have recorded more.
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