There are some players who you just know are destined for big things, both in the present and the future when it comes to their careers.

Due to Celtic’s current standing in European football, this is a regular occurrence when it comes to the younger players during at the club. Prominent examples in the past decade or so include the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Victor Wanyama and Kieran Tierney, who all eventually made the move down south to a step up in opposition.

In terms of the current side, Celtic have an array of young assets that they can call upon to deliver when fit and available. This season, it has been the job of a player like Matt O’Riley to score and provide, with the dynamic midfielder still only 22 years old. Players like O’Riley, in turn, will help the more senior members of the squad, such as Kyogo Furuhashi and Callum McGregor, flourish due to their youthful energy and eagerness to improve and develop his game further.

Although not necessarily classed as a ‘young’ player anymore, perhaps the most exciting player to come out of Celtic in a midfield sense is Reo Hatate, who joined the club in January 2022 alongside Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi in what was a period of change for the club under Ange Postecoglou. Out of these three players, it was Hatate who had the highest potential according to the Japanese media - coming from Kawasaki Frontale - who were reigning J1 League champions at the time.

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A relatively late-comer professional football, Hatate attended Juntendo University, making his professional debut in 2019. Indeed, he only had two years of senior game-time under his belt when Celtic and Postecoglou came calling for him. Signing for the Scottish champions shortly after turning 24, Hatate did not take long to make an impact at his new club. Indeed, a Player of the Match performance in the 2-0 home win against Hibernian instantly enamoured the versatile midfielder to his new supporters. According to StatsBomb data, Hatate contributed three key passes on his debut – joint-highest with right-back Josip Juranovic – and two shots at goal. Furthermore, he contributed a combined total of four tackles and interceptions, indicating a willingness to get stuck into proceedings when asked or required.

This particular match against Hibs was one of those games that live long in the memory when discussing what kind of first impression a player makes on his competitive debut. A phrase that gets thrown about quite a lot when talking about football is ‘passing the eye test’, which can be a difficult task to accomplish. There are players in the modern game that admittedly look better on a stats sheet than in person, but Hatate is probably the complete opposite of that. He passed the ‘eye test’ with flying colours that night.

Fast-forward almost two years later, and the midfielder is plying his trade under a new manager in Brendan Rodgers, though it has not been all plain sailing between the two with regard to game-time. Last month, the returning Celtic manager Rodgers offered up a bullish response to the surprising omission of the Japan international from the team in favour of David Turnbull.

Rodgers said: “It’s not in my contract to play any player, it’s a new cycle, a new manager and he has to prove himself. I’m not really worried about what’s said or not, I’ll play the team I see with the best energy, mentality and efficiency with how we want to work. There’s no doubt Reo is a talented player, but there are other talented players in the squad.

“Reo’s been really good in training. He knows areas he needs to work on to play for me, and the structure of how I work. He’s responded really well in training and will absolutely be a player we need over the course of the season.”

It is clear from these comments that the manager is a keen admirer of Hatate - which is not a surprise – given his stellar contributions to the team thus far in his Celtic career. However, Hatate retained his bench spot against Aberdeen, in turn indicating that more work had to be done to force his way into Rodgers’ plans. This opportunity came about in the second half of the game at Pittodrie, as Turnbull was taken off at the interval.

Although he played just 25 minutes in that game, it was a return to form for the midfielder, as he orchestrated proceedings from the middle of the park. In a match where Celtic were struggling to maintain control of possession, Hatate understood what was required of him, playing his part in what was a hard-fought win at a tough away ground.

Unfortunately, the prognosis following the fixture regarding the midfielder’s injury was not positive, with Hatate set to miss key domestic matches thanks to his calf strain. This meant he missed Celtic’s games against Kilmarnock, St Johnstone and Rangers in the League Cup and Premiership, as the team lost and drew, respectively in the first two matches before pulling off the Ibrox win.

In Celtic’s opening two games without him, it was clear that Hatate’s guile and agility in the middle of the park were sorely missing. Turnbull – despite his endeavour and better shooting – just cannot hit the same heights that his team-mate can. Hatate can do everything he can but faster and more efficiently.

As impressive as Odin Thiago Holm has been in his fleeting appearances thus far, the Norwegian is still settling into life at Celtic and will need time to adjust into the player that many expect him to become. Benfica loanee Paulo Bernardo is a bit of an unknown quantity in the eyes of many, so throwing him into the midfield straight away could and would be reckless. Hatate’s involvement in the side going forward will be pivotal to the short-term successes of the club in terms of this season, both domestically and in European competition.

Rodgers was keen to point this out too, as he confirmed this week that the midfielder was available for selection this weekend against Dundee. In a sit-down interview with Celtic TV, he said: "Reo Hatate is now back training with the squad, which is great news. His energy has been really good, and he has worked really hard since he picked up that injury at Aberdeen.

"I'm really pleased he's back. He is a top midfield player, and his mind is really focused now on playing in the team and doing very well.”

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It now seems that any potential issue between player and manager concerning understanding styles of play has been put to bed, with the latter high in his praise of the former’s endeavours to get back into the side. With that in mind, it feels as if Saturday could be the game to really kickstart Hatate’s season, by reclaiming the place in the team that he had grown accustomed to since his arrival in Scotland. If he plays to the best of his abilities, then that could already be a foregone conclusion in all honesty.

It is up to Hatate to show what Rodgers has been missing in the middle of the park for the past month or so. With this season looking likely to be his last before moving on – unless he signs a new deal – then the midfielder should be pulling out all of the stops to make sure he delivers for the club as he has done for the vast majority of his Celtic career. When he is on his game, then no one in Scotland can match him. In essence, his biggest enemy can be himself, it seems.

As Celtic prepare to take on Dundee this weekend, you can almost feel the excitement online regarding the return of Hatate to proceedings, with the aura that he possesses and the expectation that comes with it. Despite a mixed start to the season before his injury, one thing is for sure: Celtic are a better team with Hatate in it rather than out of it.