Stephen McGinn thinks Brendan Rodgers might be trying to ‘scare off’ potential suitors from trying to sign Celtic midfielder Reo Hatate by speaking about his injury record.
The Japan star is facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines after picking up a hamstring injury during the early stages of Celtic’s 2-2 draw against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League – Reo Hatate could be out until the New Year.
Brendan Rodgers spoke about how Celtic’s main in the middle picks up ‘a lot of injuries’ and how the club are going to look into what he does off the field.
But Stephen McGinn thinks that could be a ploy from the Celtic boss to scare off any interested parties from nabbing the 25-year-old, as he told Go Radio.
There were some noises in the summer around Reo Hatate’s future, before he signed a new contract.
The great thing about that is, if those big-money Premier League sides come knocking now, then Celtic have more than maintained his value.
“The one that maybe stands out is he somebody that is going to be injured all the time,” said McGinn regarding Rodgers’ comments on Hatate.
“Is he trying to scare off potential bidders? ‘He’s injured all the time’. He is a guy who came into football late – you can see the emotion on him when he got injured.
“As much as he loves playing for Celtic. I don’t think he has made a secret of where wants to get in his career and that would be in the Premier League. He was just getting back to his best. He was probably starting to realise ‘I am back to my best here’.
“It did take him a few weeks – but his reaction, he knew it was a bad one.”
There is a lot of quality in Hatate’s boots and he has been excellent for the club so far, but you just feel he has more levels to hit.
The Bhoys are trying to take that next step in Europe and you feel that Hatate can be a guy who can help the team take those steps forward.
The longer he stays, the better it is for Celtic because under Rodgers he can become even better.
But as Celtic fans know too well, when that big money comes knocking, the club isn’t in a position to turn it down.