King Kyogo Furuhashi downed Queen's with a clinical hat-trick as Celtic triumphed 6-4 against the Callum Davidson's Championship outfit at The City Stadium.

A treble from the talismanic striker who took his tally to four in two matches and counters from Matt O'Riley, Oh Hyeon-Gyu and Francis Turley saw the Scottish champions run out convincing winners in this nine-goal thriller of a pre-season encounter.

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers opted to start with a strong XI as several experienced first-team members took to the field against Queen's. Stephen Welsh, Tomoki Iwata, Kyogo Furuhashi and Matt O'Riley all featured as Scott Bain continued to fill the goalkeeping void left by Joe Hart.

The Scottish champions wasted no time as they opened the scoring after just six minutes in this one. Kyogo Furuhashi - who had earlier tested Calum Ferrie with a stinging effort - claimed his second goal in as many pre-season friendlies when the Japanese striker slotted home with ease after Odin Thiago Holm's clever through ball. The move saw Queen's defender Charlie Fox get himself into a real fankle and he ended up being substituted after a lengthy bout of treatment.

However, Queen's wasted no time in dragging themselves level when Stephen Welsh failed to get enough distance on a clearing header and Ruari Paton latched on to the ball and lashed a beauty home from the edge of the box with Scott Bain rooted to the spot.

The hosts captured the spirit of the Challenge match against the Scottish champions as they extended the hand of friendship by dishing out 20 free tickets to Ukrainians which was a magnificent gesture by the Championship club.

Queen's took the lead on 22 minutes when ex-Motherwell and Kilmarnock midfielder Dom Thomas angled a 20-yard past the despairing dive of Bain. Three minutes later we were all square again as the alert Kyogo diverted a Yuki Kobayashi volley low into the net. Danish international midfielder O'Riley made it 3-2 to Celtic when he hammered home an excellent strike from 14 yards on 38 minutes.

That's how it stayed until the interval when Rodgers made three changes with the most notable being forgotten man Benjamin Siegrist replacing Bain in between the sticks.

It was that man Kyogo who beat the offside trap to complete his hat-trick on the hour mark to make it 4-2 and not long after striker Oh Hyeon-Gyu rifled home to make it 5-2. The scoring still wasn't finished as Louis Longridge reduced the arrears by pulling one back for Queen's and incredibly it was 5-3 to Celtic.

Francis Turley made it 6-3 to Celtic on 66 minutes as Oh squared the ball and the youngster guided a decent effort into the net. Incredibly there was still time for Queen's Tyrece McDonnell to head home to make it 6-4 on the night.

It was a cracking warm-up for Celtic who will take a step up in class for their next pre-season outing when they face MLS outfit DC United in Washington in the early hours of July 21

Don't mind the number eight it's just Kyogo Furuhashi doing what he does best

You never lose it, do you? The Japanese talisman certainly knows where the goal is and he made it four goals in two games for the champions. He looked lively and sharp in the opening stages, and he warmed the hands of Calum Ferrie with a stinging drive before giving Celtic the lead on six minutes. Norwegian midfielder Odin Thiago Holm was the provider on both occasions. Queen's defender Calum Ferrie got himself into a real tangle after Holm's excellent through pass and Kyogo coolly waltzed forward and scored from close range. It was the striker who restored parity when he diverted Yuki Kobayashi's volley home to claim his third in two warm-up matches. The hat-trick was duly completed after the interval as he beat the offside trap to sweep home and that proved to be his last act of the match. It would appear that the imminent threat of Republic of Ireland attacker Adam Idah's arrival is bringing out the best in Kyogo. His attitude in both close season matches has been top notch and he has been rewarded with his goals return. He is a class act. You never lose it, do you? Not when your name is Kyogo.

There is a player in Odin Thiago Holm and this could well be the Norwegian's year

The Norwegian was a bit-part player for Celtic last season but there is something there and you can see why Rodgers rates him so highly. There is such a small sample size to go on thus far but the 21-year-old does possess natural ability. He busied himself in the play against Queen's. He has a good interception rate and he looks good going forward when he is progressing the ball. It was his pass that set up Kyogo for the opening goal and he was involved in Celtic's most creative moments in the first half. There is a school of thought that he could benefit from a loan spell just like Bosun Lawal but the challenge for Holm will be to force his way into Rodgers's first-team plans this season and gain valuable game time. There is raw talent, and the materials and ingredients are certainly there for the Celtic manager to mould and shape Holm into the kind of player Rodgers wants him to be for the club. He possesses a lovely touch at times. It is a huge season for Holm who will be looking to make this his breakthrough campaign in the green and white. He is a player who looks like he has more to offer in a really positive way for Celtic moving forward. He now has to make the most of the first-team opportunities when they come his way which he has failed to do thus far.

Bosun Lawal rewarded for an impressive showing against Ayr United

The 21-year-old midfielder produced another decent display after impressing against Ayr United at Somerset Park last Friday. He produced a quality top-drawer pass over the top which led to Matt O'Riley's goal that saw Celtic regain the lead. Lawal thundered into tackles and made his presence felt in the engine room. He not only adds a bit of physicality and steel but he is also no slouch in the arts and crafts department and he is a player who has given his manager food for thought already in the two pre-season matches. The Republic of Ireland under-21 international is picking up from where he left off last season after being voted Fleetwood Town's player of the year. A full season playing competitive English league football has worked wonders for his confidence levels and he is playing like a player who now feels he belongs at a club like Celtic. It is hard to understand why there is buzz and ripple of excitement surrounding Lawal and what he might be able to produce for the club this season. It's been a positive start and one that he now has to build on when the ball bounces for real next month.

New signings are most definitely required...but Celtic and Brendan Rodgers already know that

Tell us something we don't know. The Celtic supporters may be getting impatient at the lack of summer transfer activity. A new goalkeeper as well as a striker to complement Kyogo are a necessity for Celtic. That's before we even start to talk about the need for reinforcements in the left-back, centre-back and midfield areas. In an ideal world, Celtic and Rodgers would have hoped to have some reinforcements on the plane heading for the USA on July 16. This weekend may well see a flurry of transfer activity. The team is in desperate need of new blood and the fans are in desperate need of a tonic and not of the gin variety. However, there were still plenty of positives to take from the domestic runouts against Ayr and Queen's Park respectively least of all the fact that Kyogo's goalscoring touch has never deserted him and Lawal and Holm's encouraging displays. Celtic will spend and new players will arrive. Patience is a virtue as they say. However, the green and white natives are getting restless at the lack of new faces thus far. What is that expression? Give me patience and give me it now. The Celtic supporters are slowly but surely reaching that stage.