Ex-Celtic striker Chris Sutton believes manager Ange Postecoglou may have signed another bargain in Daizen Maeda.

The Japanese international has been snapped up on a six-month loan deal from Yokohama F. Marinos, with an obligation to buy in the summer for only £1.6m, and Sutton feels it could prove to be an excellent piece of business, following on from Kyogo Furuhashi’s arrival in the summer:

“Maeda… the possibility of £1.3m, £1.6m whatever it is… on the face of it, that looks like it could be staggering value, doesn’t it? So it suits the team on the pitch, but it also suits Celtic’s model financially.”

If we compare Maeda and Kyogo’s records in the J-League, you can see why Sutton thinks the January recruit may go on to emulate his fellow countryman.

Kyogo scored 15 goals in 21 league appearances for Vissel Kobe in the 2021 season, while Maeda managed 23 in 36 for Yokohama. If we work out the goals per game ratio, Kyogo (0.71) was only slightly better than Maeda (0.63).

Of course, adapting to a new league is not as straightforward as that and we shall have to wait and see whether Maeda’s game fits well with Scottish football.