CELTIC have been hit by a hammer blow with Reo Hatate ruled out for a number of weeks with a hamstring problem.

The recently back to full strength Japanese international midfielder hobbled off early in the Hoops’ midweek 2-2 defeat with Atletico Madrid at Parkhead.

Now that Hatate is hurt, Brendan Rodgers will need to make plans ahead of time, beginning with tomorrow afternoon’s Easter Road game against Hibs. However, the Irishman does not know how long Hatate will be out of the lineup until he can be selected again.

Paulo Bernardo, an on-loan Benfica player, replaced David Turnbull, who had started the season in the first squad, as a replacement against the Spanish cracks.

Hatate, 25, was barely back from an August injury that prevented him from playing in the team’s 1-0 victory at Ibrox in early September, but he came back to start the Champions League opener against Feyenoord in Rotterdam 16 days later.

A week from Tuesday, in the Spanish capital, the playmaker is already a major question for the second leg of the doubleheader against Diego Simeone’s team.

In an interview with Sky Sports, Rodgers stated: “He will undoubtedly be out for a few weeks, but there is no definitive timeline.”

“We’re waiting for things to calm down, for the outcome, and then we’ll check in to see where he stands. But that didn’t seem good at all.

“If you watch the game, he overstretched in the first 35 seconds and felt the effects right away.

It’s really unfortunate for him, because last year he missed time due to a hamstring injury. This time, it’s the other one.