GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - MAY 10: Celtic's Daizen Maeda celebrates after scoring to make it 3-1 during a William Hill Premiership match between Celtic and Rangers at Celtic Park, on May 10, 2026, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
The forward provided the goals and energy that won the domestic double but was expected to move on during the summer transfer window.
After joining Celtic in January 2022 Maeda signed a four year contract in the summer of 2023 soon after Brendan Rodgers took over as manager.
When Kyogo Furihashi was sold in January 2025 Maeda came in off the left wing to devastating effect.
A total of 33 goals were scored with a purple patch in the spring time.
Against Bayern Munich in the Champions League he excelled home and away.
It has been claimed that Maeda cleared his locker out at Lennoxtown before the summer 2025 transfer window ended.
When Martin O’Neill returned for a second time he told a media conference how Maeda had been expected to go to Wolfsburg last summer.
Now after another dramatic season it seems that the Maeda Years at Celtic may not be about to end.
In a strange story BBC Scotland reported:
As he prepares for Friday’s final Group F game against Sweden, Maeda was asked what he had learned in his four-and-a-half years playing football in Scotland.
“That, if you do your best, the supporters will feel it, and they’ll want to root for you,” he said.
“So I want to continue doing my best in Scotland.”
Told that a female member of Scotland’s back-room staff had said “tell him I love him”, Maeda responded: “Getting people to love and accept you, not just in Japan but in foreign countries like Scotland too, is not easy.
“So it makes me so happy that your friend said that.”
The female member of the Scotland backroom staff seems a bit far fetched.
Why would she be messaging a reporter previewing the match between Sweden and Japan?
Was the conversation in English or Japanese?
Maeda is the master of the unexpected.
His place in Celtic folklore is assured. There may be another contract and another season for him in his adopted home.
C’mon Daizen….
Do it Pleeeeeeeeeze…
Stay Pleeeeeeeeeeze…
Terrorise the new Tavineeeeeeeer !
Please let that translation be exactly 100% TRUE
However, we all know that sometimes meaning is lost in translation for many reasons
Let’s hope this is not one of those occasions
HH???
This might be good news Joe….WTF??
Hopefully and he’s said one day I’d like to go to the English premiership not this moment so as U said Joe another year
Don’t believe this FAKE NEWS story,sevco toilet newspapers and friends in tv and radio giving false hope to us,only for Maeda to leave,and them to sit back and laugh at the false hope and FAKE NEWS,they fed us.
It’s a real hoot Frank to see you interact on a post you describe as FAKE NEWS. It is FRANK right. For a moment I thought it was your double Scud Missile. Perhaps it’s Madman Mars this evening or even Stephen.
Well enjoy the Fakery.
Obviously advised by his agent to see out his contract. Can’t see this bumbling Board letting Daizen walk for free when they can get 10M+ now. However, he’s still a massive asset on the park and if it wasn’t for his goals after the split then we wouldn’t have secured 5IAR. What this out of touch Board can’t do, is sell Daizen before massive CL qualifying games. But, worryingly they have form for this.
I said recently on here that IMO he’s the only IRREPLACEABLE Celt in the squad just now so I’ll just continue to hope Daizen stays as he’s, er, em IRREPLACEABLE. Please stay Daizen, we ALL love you.
HUNT THE BOARD.