2025/26 wasn’t perfect for Daizen Maeda at Celtic, far from it, but the Japanese genius came alive when it mattered, almost single-handedly dragging the Glasgow giants over the line in the Premiership.
There were so many memorable moments in that dramatic run-in, be it his outrageous overhead kick in the derby, or the sight of the 29-year-old barging into Lawrence Shankland on the final day.
You could see what it meant to him as he beat the turf in celebration after making it 2-1 in that title-decider, the new Ipswich Town man since receiving a deserved final goodbye following his recent return to Parkhead.
Snapped up for just £1.6m, prior to being sold for £10m, he has to go down as one of Celtic’s best bits of business of modern times.
Was Maeda the best Celtic signing made by Postecoglou?
The drop-off in recent times in terms of recruitment has been stark, a point highlighted by the fact that despite making ten signings this summer, just two of those started against Rangers last time out.
So many players have flattered to deceive in the post-Ange Postecoglou period, and this current crop look set to follow suit, with there seemingly little cohesion between the manager and the recruitment team.
In Postecoglou’s days, his fingerprints were all over Celtic’s transfer dealings, the club enjoying something of a golden period in which only a handful of players failed to impress.
The Aussie certainly set the tone with his first signing, snapping up talismanic striker Kyogo Furuhashi for a fee of around £4.6m, while that summer also saw Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers prove instant hits in Glasgow.
When January came around, the Bhoys again enjoyed a stellar window, bringing in Maeda into the building on the cheap, while also adding Reo Hatate and Matt O’Riley for just £1.1m and £1.5m, respectively.
So many success stories, with Alistair Johnston another name to throw into the mix, yet did anyone really eclipse Maeda’s impact?
Across four-and-a-half years, he scored 79 goals in 212 games, alongside registering 38 assists, a remarkable return considering his £1.6m transfer fee.
It’s the type of deal Celtic need to try and replicate again amid this sticky period of recruitment. Perhaps they already have…
Why Celtic star might be the best signing since Maeda
It speaks to the rising market values, but bargain signings such as that of Maeda have been few and far between in recent years, this summer’s spending an obvious case in point.
Of course, deals for Johnston and Nicolas Kuhn stick out, the pair costing around £3m apiece, yet the Canadian has been hampered by injury of late, while Kuhn was on his way after just 18 months.
The free transfer return of Kieran Tierney has been a coup, although fitness has again remained an issue, the experienced Scot rarely seeing out the 90 minutes over the past year or so.
|
Maeda – Celtic record |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Club |
Games (Assists) |
|
25/26 |
54 |
17 (10) |
|
24/25 |
51 |
33 (12) |
|
23/24 |
36 |
10 (4) |
|
22/23 |
49 |
11 (7) |
|
21/22 |
22 |
8 (5) |
|
Total |
212 |
79 (38) |
In terms of a signing that really comes close to Maeda, in terms of its bargain nature and impact, then it has to be Benjamin Nygren, the Swede joining from Nordsjaelland last year for a fee of just £1.7m.
In today’s market especially, that is a mere snip, with even Sebastian Tounekti, another arrival from Scandinavia that summer, fetching north of £5m.
Nygren undoubtedly remains a polarising figure in Glasgow, although so too was Maeda in those early years, deemed something of a headless chicken as he initially struggled to marry his stellar work ethic with a consistent end product.
That all came together eventually, as seen in his 33-goal heroics in 2024/25, with there a similar feel to Nygren to a degree, his free-scoring quality more than making up for his lack of athleticism and mobility.
In his debut campaign, for instance, he led the way with 21 goals in all competitions, 17 of which came in the Premiership, having arguably been shouldering the goalscoring burden alone until Maeda caught fire again post-split.
It was Nygren too who kicked things off this season by netting on the opening weekend against Dundee, the 25-year-old already up to 11 goals and assists in 12 appearances.
He’s not perfect, having come unstuck in key recent games in that attacking midfield role, yet nor was Maeda, the Japanese international no stranger to an errant pass or missed chance.
When needed, Nygren has so often delivered in spectacular style over the past 12 months, with the biggest compliment of all being that this £1.7m signing looks like kind of business done under Postecoglou’s watch.
Indeed, Celtic are likely to make a significant profit when they do come to sell later down the line, with CIES Football Observatory deeming him to be worth as much as €32m (£27m), an increase of 1488%.
Will he be the man to break that £25m barrier when it comes to Celtic sales?
