Why Tomoki Iwata should start for Celtic v Rangers

Even though Ange Postecoglou’s side were held to a rare draw at Celtic Park, results elsewhere over the weekend mean they require just one win from their five post-split fixtures to secure back-to-back titles.

For now, attention turns to the small matter of a Scottish Cup semi-final against rivals Rangers this coming Sunday.  

Postecoglou will hope to welcome back a few of those currently out injured for the showdown at Hampden, particularly off the back of a laboured league performance.

The return of Jota, Liel Abada and James Forrest would give the Hoops boss more options in the wide areas while the availability of midfielder Reo Hatate would represent a huge boost as Celtic look to take a major step towards a domestic trophy clean sweep.

READ MORE: Celtic must replace Joe Hart before he hits his 'Allan McGregor stage'

Hatate, out since he picked up a hamstring injury in the home match against Hibs last month, has been in sparkling form this season. The Celtic manager confirmed after the Motherwell draw that the Japanese midfielder would have a full week of training but his availability, certainly to play from the start, could still be in balance given the nature of his injury.

Should Hatate fail to return in time to start at the national stadium, his compatriot Tomoki Iwata will likely retain his place in the Celtic midfield.

Iwata’s emergence in the last few weeks has already mitigated the short-term loss of Hatate and even in the weekend’s stalemate with the Steelmen, the January signing was again quietly effective.

After making appearances off the bench in the last few games against Rangers, we take a look at the attributes that the 26-year-old has shown in the early stages of his Celtic career that will make him well-equipped to handle his first start in a Glasgow Derby…

Flexibility

Iwata took up the number six role, the deepest player in Celtic’s midfield three, in his first start against Ross County earlier this month.

In the last two games, McGregor has retaken his position deeper in the midfield however Iwata’s deeper starting position when playing further forward as one of the 8s has seen Celtic’s shape resemble more of a 4-2-3-1 than the usual 4-3-3.

Player roles matter much more than numerical formations though. In possession, Celtic have still been building up play with a single pivot, usually McGregor, but Iwata has often rotated into that position too, as can be seen in the above stills from the game at the weekend.

This has given Celtic more fluidity in the middle of the park, something that was ruthlessly effective against Kilmarnock’s man-marking system at Rugby Park recently.

This increase in quick rotations in midfield is only possible due to Iwata’s speed and mobility, as well as his ability to play quickly in busy areas of the park. For each of their own individual strengths, these are things that both Aaron Mooy and David Turnbull struggle with.

Given the issues in building up at times in the last game against Rangers at Celtic Park, when Mooy started alongside McGregor and Matt O’Riley, Iwata’s presence should mean a more fluid midfield than in that game.

This could help give Celtic the upper hand, even without the considerable talents of Hatate, in a key battleground at Hampden on Sunday. 

Physicality

Iwata’s speed and mobility, which brings more fluidity to the Celtic midfield, will also be handy when it comes to covering the wide Hampden pitch out of possession.

If the game becomes more of an actual battle too, last year’s J1 League MVP will be more than ready for that too.

As his teammate Matt O’Riley recently said: "Tomoki Iwata is a tank. He's always in the gym doing upper body work and you should see the size of his arms which are probably bigger than most of our legs."

A more physical presence in the middle of the pitch has often been cited as a missing ingredient in the Hoops midfield in these games, especially last season’s Scottish Cup semi-final.

With Iwata, Celtic, as much as they will not look to get dragged into a battle, should be better equipped to deal with this side of the game.

Composure

Iwata has shown excellent composure on the ball since coming into the starting 11 in the last few weeks. 

This was exemplified by his brilliant first touch under pressure on Saturday that set up McGregor for his strike to open the scoring.

His ability to take the ball in tight spaces and play one-and-two-touch, although not quite to the same levels as Hatate admittedly, has been impressive.

In the red-hot atmosphere of a derby cup semi-final, coolness on the ball will be vital. Again, there should be little worry about Iwata in this regard.

Attacking threat

Finally, despite taking up deeper starting roles, Iwata has also demonstrated his ability to be a threat when he has gotten into more advanced areas. 

His excellent vision has seen him pull off several defence-splitting passes in the last few weeks, including that eye of a needle through ball that would have been one of the passes of the season had Kyogo been able to take in his stride.

The recent 4-1 win at Kilmarnock also saw Iwata come close to opening his goal-scoring account with a fierce first-time strike from the edge of the box.

Like his general play, which is technically so efficient, Iwata struck the ball cleanly with his effort whistling just a yard or so by the post.

If he was looking for a suitable setting to go one better and net his first goal in green and white he couldn’t do much better than this coming Sunday.

His ability in these areas again highlights Iwata’s flexibility – it is worth remembering he won the J1 League Player of the Year award playing mostly as a centre-back. 

His strengths in the previous two areas, rotations in midfield and added physicality, will likely be more important at the weekend with more of the creative responsibility in the midfield likely falling to O’Riley.  

That said, Iwata will still represent yet another threat for Rangers to contend with if he does pop up in and around the box. 

Conclusion

Mooy was given the nod for the recent 3-2 league win over Rangers but with the Australian struggling to find form following his own injury problems, it is far more likely that Iwata will join McGregor and O’Riley in the Celtic engine room at Hampden, should Hatate not make it.

As big a blow as it would be to be without Hatate for another big game, Iwata’s adaptability in terms of midfield rotations, coupled with those physical attributes, should still make Celtic stronger in the middle of the park than that recent win at Parkhead over the Ibrox side.