Beggars can’t be choosers. Hatate ‘turfs out’ advances from three clubs, while the Celtic boss says he needs him for Wednesday night’s CL qualifier…

I’ve got to hand it to Reo Hatate, the boy has got spirit, it’s just a shame he couldn’t have converted that spirit into top class performances for Celtic last season.

Amid interest from Greece, the Middle East and the U.S., Hatate has rejected out of hand the idea of a move to anywhere else other than a top 5 European league.

You’ve got to admire his balls.

A guy who contributed an hour of football in the last 9 fixtures of last season reckons he’s good enough to play for a top European club.

And who knows?

Maybe he is.

You just wouldn’t be able to tell at Celtic due to his lack of game time.

But hey, the kid believes in himself, so who am I to judge him?

Then again, I can only judge Hatate by what I saw from him last season, since I’ve seen nothing from him this season.

What I saw last season told me that Reo Hatate had checked out.

But as it is in all walks of life, beggars cannot be choosers.

You have to earn the right to play for a big football club.

Hatate was given that chance by Ange Postecoglou, and early doors under the big Australian, he showed us all what he could have been.

Celtic is a big football club, but apparently, it isn’t big enough for Reo Hatate.

He believes there’s better out there for him.

Not only does he believe that, he believes he can earn a move to a prestigious top 5 European club by doing absolute nothing at all at Celtic to merit such a move.

More power to him.

Like I said at the outset, he has spirit.

Hatate seems to possess all the spirit his Japanese compatriot Daizen Maeda had, but not of the energy and drive to match it.

As it turns out, Hatate may just get the chance to prove he’s worth a move to a top 5 European club.

In a sort of ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back scenario’ for Celtic.

Because due to the Celtic board’s gambling once again, and a lack of midfield options for tomorrow night’s Champions League qualifier, it seems Martin O’Neill may be left with no choice but to deploy Hatate in midfield at some point over the two legged tie.

Here is what the Celtic boss had to say on the situation with the Japanese midfielder:

I think there are a number of tentative enquiries. Nothing has come up that is beneficial to him or the club.

But that might change. If it did not change I would be happy.

Reo is a fine footballer. He has dropped down the pecking order at this moment. But if he could recapture the form he showed two seasons ago he would still be an asset.

Any player who feels as if they are being squeezed and they want to play and they feel they are not going to play, then playing is the most important thing.

Now, there are a couple of risks in playing Hatate, if it comes down to it for the Celtic boss.

His attitude being the main one.

He downed tools at Celtic quite a while ago.

What makes anyone think he’ll pick them up again and put in a shift for the club?

Well, tomorrow night could be his chance.

Take the the opportunity if it comes your way, and show potential suitors what you’re capable of.

That’s then beneficial to both parties.

Like I said, ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back’.

The question is, does Hatate have the mentality to do that?

Or will he just saunter around the place being dispossessed easily, and misplacing passes as he is wont to do when his head is not in the game?

This is what comes with the risk of playing Hatate in a game of tomorrow night’s magnitude.

Now, we might not see him at all, but the fact that we have to think this way is testament to the fact that the board have once again decided to gamble with our Champions League qualification.

Last season, they took away all of our goal scoring power up front for the Kairat Alamaty game.

This season they’ve decimated our midfield.

All in the name of ensuring the books are balanced, and that we are once again posting a net profit on our transfer business to date.

The absent meddling golfer must have his pound of flesh if we’re going to have the audacity to spend big in the transfer market.

As we discussed last night on the Trinity Tims, it was imperative the board got that money for Arne Engels first and foremost.

The guaranteed £40 million the Champions League supplies is secondary to that for some inexplicable reason.

Now we’re left to rely on a player like Reo Hatate to help us in our CL qualification bid.

Let’s hope he can do us a turn if it comes to it.

Because if he doesn’t, that move to a top 5 European League will continue to be a pipe dream.

In addition to that, he may just end up warming the bench until next January at least.

Which to be honest is a shame.

Reo Hatate had so much potential.

It’s a pity he didn’t use it to land him that big move he spoke about so often.

Then again, you know the old saying?

‘He can talk the talk, but he can’t walk the walk’.

Hatate needs to start walking the walk, and soon.

For both his and Celtic’s sake.

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