There aren’t many players who have been better to watch at Celtic over the years than Reo Hatate.
The Celtic midfielder was one of a number of players who was signed under the successful Ange Postecoglou era that included a Treble.
It could even be argued that under Brendan Rodgers, Hatate produced his best performance when Celtic beat RB Leipzig in the Champions League.
Even though that was only 12 months ago, a lot has changed, including the performances of Hatate in the middle of the park.
Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty ImagesReo Hatate and Celtic’s midfield
Celtic beat St Mirren right at the death over the weekend, but it was only thanks to a Callum McGregor wonder goal from distance.
But that shouldn’t hide the overall performance in Paisley, as Kris Boyd highlighted the performance of the midfield and Hatate.
The former Scotland striker questioned what on earth has happened to Hatate this season, because whilst many are looking at the forward line, those behind them aren’t performing, as he told Sky Sports Football (22/11/25).
“I think that’s the key thing, he (O’Neill) isn’t getting carried away,” said Boyd. “He is winning games of football.
“There is no doubt your (Chris Sutton) team is far superior to this one. He said it there in his interview. There are players who need to be doing more, and there is.
“You can’t always look to Callum McGregor to drag you over the line. There are other players there.
“I mean, I don’t know what’s happened to Reo Hatate in recent months. Engels was given another opportunity, and he was really disappointing against St Mirren, in terms of getting on the ball and making things happen.
“I know we can point towards the forward players. Tounekti and Maeda. Johnny Kenny, when he was on as well, and say, ‘What did they do?’
“But you are depending on the ones behind you as well. I thought they were poor. It doesn’t matter. They managed to get the three points.”
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Thankfully, Martin O’Neill isn’t playing the good cop role, just because he is in interim charge, and he is calling out the team’s performance.
After the late winner against St Mirren, O’Neill touched upon how the performance wasn’t good enough, and Boyd praised the legendary coach for telling the truth.
“I think, from Martin O’Neill’s point of view, being able to stand there and tell the truth, because a lot of managers would go up there and fluff it,” added Boyd.
“They will get through the interviews, and players will think, ‘I have done okay.’ He knows that level of performance will get Celtic into trouble.”
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