Will Celtic appoint a new manager during this international break?
Following Sunday’s 4-0 Premiership victory over Kilmarnock, interim manager Martin O’Neill honestly admitted that he does not know whether or not he will still be in charge when the Hoops are next in action against St Mirren in Paisley a week on Saturday.
Reports this week suggest the board are intensifying their search for Brendan Rodgers’ long-term replacement, currently in London holding talks with candidates, with a leading target having now emerged.
Whoever takes charge, considering Celtic will play 11 matches, including a League Cup Final, before the transfer window opens, will need to get the best out of the Hoops’ current squad, so could landing their dream target be good news for the club’s best attacker?
The 'frontrunner' to become Celtic manager
As has been widely reported, Kieran McKenna, Wilfried Nancy, Craig Bellamy and Robbie Keane are among the candidates to become Celtic manager.
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However, their dream candidate all along has been Bodø/Glimt boss Kjetil Knutsen, who, according to a report by TEAMtalk, ‘remains a frontrunner’.
They claim that a move to Glasgow is viewed as the ‘perfect next step’ for the 57-year-old, who is out of contract in the Arctic Circle later this year, having worked miracles with Bodø/Glimt since being appointed in 2018.
His team demolished Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic 5-1 on aggregate in a Conference League tie back in February 2022, so could he soon be returning to Parkhead, only this time in the home dugout?
And would his arrival help to get the best out of Daizen Maeda?
Why a change of manager could revive Maeda
Earlier this season, Maeda revealed that he had asked to leave Celtic this summer to take the next step in his career, but was not allowed to do so, following the sales of Nicolas Kühn and Adam Idah, while no replacements for them were even brought in until the final hours of the window.
Well, after scoring 33 goals last season, the Japanese forward has not been at his scintillating best this time round, scoring only four goals so far, most notably nodding home the stoppage time winner against Motherwell, also on target against Killie last weekend.
Overall, most of Maeda’s statistics have decreased this season, as the table below highlights.
Goals
0.6
0.5
Assists
0.4
0.3
Shots
1.8
2
Conversion rate %
32.65%
21.43%
Big chances missed
0.6
0.83
Chances created
1.5
1.2
Big chances created
0.35
0.28
Forward passes
3.6
2.1
Touches
43.2
44.8
Touches in the box
6.6
6.6
Average rating
7.31
6.87
As the table documents, the majority of Maeda’s numbers have endured a downturn this season, including goals, shooting accuracy and chance creation, missing more big chances on a per-90 basis too.
When the Japanese international is at his best, he is able to ferociously close down defenders and burst into space, as this goal in last season’s League Cup Final highlights, something he has not been allowed to do very often this season, hindered by the Celts’ stodgy style of play.
However, could that all be about to change, allowing Maeda to rediscover his best form?
The reason Knutsen is the outstanding candidate is that he has completely transformed Bodø/Glimt.
When he was appointed manager in 2018, the Yellow Horde were still in the Norwegian second tier, but they have now won four of the last five Eliteserien titles, chasing another with two games to go of this campaign.
Having said that, Bodø/Glimt have really made a name for themselves in Europe, reaching the Conference League quarter-finals in 2022 and last season’s Europa League semi-finals, qualifying for the Champions League group stages for the very first time earlier this year.
Michael Stewart believes Knutsen has done an “incredible” job in the Arctic Circle, while Jan Åge Fjørtoft praised Knutsen’s “clear philosophy” and “attractive” style of play.
Across his 351 matches in charge, Bodø/Glimt have always used a fluid 4-3-3 formation which, as outlined by Total Football Analysis, features attacking full-backs, thereby allowing the wide-attackers to drift inside and score goals.
Meantime, as documented by the Coaches’ Voice, Knutsen’s team consistently rank highly in terms of ‘most dribbles and 1v1 moments’, favouring quick interplay and direct attacks.
Well, all of this sounds like it would suit Maeda’s skillset, whether the Japanese forward was to be deployed centrally or out wide.
Concerningly, Maeda may still harbour hopes of a move away in January, with a World Cup on the horizon, but Knutsen, should he arrive, surely would not sanction the sale of Celtic’s best attacker, while his appointment may represent such a coup that the forward is convinced that the Celts are heading in the right direction once again.
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