‘The challenges I’ve faced’: Reo Hatate opens up on his ‘invisible struggles’ at Celtic

Reo Hatate ‘struggled’ at Celtic for six months

However, whilst everything in the garden looked rosy from the outside, the Japanese midfielder has opened up on his struggles during the early stages of his Celtic career.

In January 2022, Hatate made his debut in the 2-0 victory over Hibs at Parkhead, launching him onto the Celtic scene.

Although Hatate played in every game except one for Celtic in the second half of his rookie campaign, the Japan international acknowledges that he had a difficult time in the early going after moving to Glasgow.

“Well,” Hatate said to Celtic TV. I haven’t had as long of a career as players who went pro right out of high school because I only started playing professionally after graduating from college.

“In a way, it feels like things haven’t gone quite as smoothly for me, but I’ve definitely faced challenges. There were times I wasn’t selected for matches and when I first moved abroad I struggled with my conditioning for about six months.

“I’ve had my share of invisible struggles. Still, I’m fortunate enough to have won numerous titles, starting from my time at Kawasaki and now here with Celtic.”