He had a touch that came from heaven- Gordon Strachan on his iconic Celtic signing

With his Farewell Match coming up next month Gordon Strachan has recalled the impact and legacy of Shunsuke Nakamura.

A second generation of Japanese players are making an impact at Celtic while as Technical Director of Dundee Strachan has placed an emphasis on gymnastics within the club Academy rather than traditional gym work.

Nakamura joined Celtic during the chaotic start to Strachan’s reign in 2005, signing between the two legs of the disastrous Champions League defeat to Artmedia Bratislava.

Bringing in a flair player seemed like the last thing that Celtic needed as the legacy from Martin O’Neill had largely been based on physical strength with the exception of Lubo Moravcik who had left the club three years earlier.

Scottish football isn’t known for having finesse but over four seasons Celtic’s first Japanese player left a lasting impression on a future Scotland manager.

The special video of Shunsuke Nakamura Farewell Match to be held in Yokohama on December 17th has been released? #ThankyouNAKA @CelticFCpic.twitter.com/mXIPF2iJMG

— Yatao (@yataoda4) November 9, 2023

Speaking to Ice36 Strachan said:

I’ve said this before and people will always say, but you played with Brian Robson and Kenny Dalglish, players that were better all-rounders than Nakamura, but just on pure technical ability and brilliance he was the best.

He had a touch that came from heaven. He could see things and, because his first touch was so good, he had the ability to beat people with it or to then open up the pitch playing a wonderful pass because he created the angles for himself. Player’s couldn’t get near him – they would drop off him because he would make them look foolish.

He scored some amazing goals too. The players absolutely loved him. The way that he trained and worked was so impressive. His English wasn’t the best but that didn’t stop him from building a connection with everyone that he met during his time at Celtic.

He was so humble. Nakamura had powerful legs and I always asked him how he got so fit. He had an unbelievable core strength. He told me he did gymnastics when he was young. Guess what we’re doing at Dundee with the youngsters gymnastics!

It didn’t matter if we were playing AC Milan, Manchester United or Livingstone at Celtic Park. As soon as the match ended, I’d say a couple of words to the players, and he would then change into his training gear and go to the gym upstairs and work on his leg weights and upper body weights. He was probably the last person to leave the stadium after a game.