Reo Hatate, a midfielder for Celtic, sustained a second hamstring injury during the Parkhead club’s Champions League match against Atletico Madrid yesterday night. Brendan Rodgers said he is unsure of how long the Japanese international will be out of action.
Soon after his countryman Kyogo Furuhashi scored the first goal of the Group E match, Hatate hobbled off, severely hurting the Scottish champions’ prospects of earning a point against their Spanish rivals.
Paulo Bernardo took his position, and Callum McGregor and his teammates, without their first-choice centre midfielder on the pitch, managed to record a 2-2 draw against Diego Simeone’s club.
But Rodgers acknowledged afterward that losing such a vital player was a big blow. On Saturday, his club will try to hold onto their seven-point lead at the top of the tight Premiership by defeating Hibernian at Easter Road.
“It was unexpected that we had to substitute Reo early,” he remarked. “It is premature to speculate on the duration of his absence. It appeared to be a hamstring. We’ll see how that turns out.
The 25-year-old’s hamstring injury sustained during the pivotal Premiership encounter against Aberdeen at Pittodrie back in August caused him to miss more than a month of the 2023–24 season.
The Hatate injury could not spoil Celtic’s excellent performance; they played brilliantly against Atletico and were unfortunate to only get a point at the conclusion of ninety minutes.
“I thought the performance was excellent, particularly the first forty-five minutes,” he remarked. “Our game, our pushing, and the calibre of our football were all exactly what we could have hoped for.
“We regret that they penalised us. First of all, I felt it was really severe; secondly, it returns to their player (Antoine Griezmann, who scored an equaliser) after hitting the post.
Despite drawing with their La Liga opponents, Celtic is currently bottom of their Champions League group, but Rodgers is quite positive about what lies ahead after seeing his team play so well.
He remarked, “It gives us the confidence to know that we can compete.” “We have the ability to generate opportunities and play the style of football we like.
For the majority of the game, the team passed the ball well and pressed the game. We’re not used to playing at that tempo against that kind of opponent, so there’s a slight fatigue that sets in over the last 20 minutes. A hint of exhaustion sets in.
At this point, though, your confidence comes from your performance. And that truly was
Although Celtic’s draw with their La Liga opponents leaves them in last place in their Champions League group, Rodgers is full of optimism about what lies ahead after seeing his team play so well.
“We feel more confident knowing that we can compete,” he remarked. “We can make things happen and play the kind of game we want to play.
For much of the game, the squad passed the ball well and pressed the game well. We get a little tired in the last twenty minutes because we’re not used to playing against opponents that calibre of play at that tempo. A little weariness sets in.
However, at this point, confidence is gained by performance. And that was genuinely
When asked if victory made sense for his quickly developing Celtic team, Rodgers replied, “It’s very difficult, that’s the reality.” However, we’ll exert every effort to maintain that level of intensity, and ideally we succeed.
“We played fantastic football against Atletico.” They were both excellent goals. That will instill trust in the players. At this level, they will only get better and better.
“When playing a game like this, you have to have faith and acquire knowledge. Obtaining a performance in addition to a result was crucial. The performance has truly thrilled me.
We needed to put some points on the board, so I’m happy with the outcome. We desired all three, but don’t lose the game if you can’t win it. Despite their actual talent, they didn’t have many opportunities throughout the game, thus I didn’t think we were going to lose. I definitely see progress.
“My sole concern is us. There are three games left. I believe we demonstrated our ability to compete in the games. We go
In their match against Atletico, Celtic had the better of the ball and produced several excellent goal opportunities up top. Rodgers said that he was happy to see his players be able to compete by playing attractive, offensive football.
“There’s a balance,” he stated. Playing the football you want to play and applying pressure are both very demanding. However, since you are playing with exceptional teams, you must be organised within that. The team’s progress is visible.
Critics will always be around. Stats are thrown to you. I’m not too concerned about that; my main goal is to keep this team and this club competitive at this extremely high level.
