Rodgers must drop Hatate to unleash Celtic star who wowed Kyogo

Celtic are back in action for the second time in 2025 in the Scottish Premiership as they prepare to welcome St Mirren to Parkhead this afternoon.

The Hoops are looking to bounce back from their horrendous day on the other side of Glasgow on Thursday, as they were beaten 3-0 by rivals Rangers at Ibrox.

It was a first defeat of the league season and the first time that Kasper Schmeichel had conceded more than two goals in a league match for the club, having only let in four goals in the previous 18 games.

Brendan Rodgers could react to the poor performance and result by making some changes to his line-up, starting with Reo Hatate coming out of the team.

Why Reo Hatate should be dropped

The Celtic manager should ruthlessly bin the Japan international from the starting XI after his dismal performance in and out of possession in the loss to Rangers.

Hatate was selected to start in the middle of the park alongside captain Callum McGregor and Portugal U21 international Paulo Bernardo, but failed to justify his inclusion with a strong display.

As you can see in the table above, the Japanese midfielder did not excel in any phase of the game at Ibrox, as he was incredibly wasteful in possession and failed to offer much in the way of defensive protection.

The 27-year-old star should, therefore, be ditched from the starting line-up after such an ineffectual performance, and that will open the door for Rodgers to bring summer signing Arne Engels back in.

Why Arne Engels should start

The Belgium international, who joined from Augsburg, was dropped to the bench for the Old Firm clash, despite an impressive display from the start against St Johnstone in the previous match.

Engels, who Rodgers claimed is “excellent” in training, produced a sublime cross to assist Kyogo Furuhashi’s second goal in that match, with the Japan international simply having “wow” to say in response to a question about the pass in his post-match interview.

It was his first assist in 16 appearances in the Premiership this season, but it was the fourth ‘big chance’ that he has created for his teammates, which suggests that he has been let down by wasteful finishing from others.

Engels has found the back of the net four times in those 16 matches, starting ten of them, and has recorded one goal and seven assists in nine outings in the Champions League and League Cup this term.

The 21-year-old dynamo, who has won 50% of his duels in the Premiership, is a midfield player who can pick up intelligent positions to create moments in the final third, as shown by the ‘big chances’ he has created and the assists he has racked up.

Therefore, Rodgers should immediately ditch Hatate, after his dismal performance against Rangers, and unleash Engels to cause problems for the St Mirren defence at Parkhead this afternoon with his creativity and quality.

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