Time for Ange to tell Kyogo to cut out the nonsense
BIG ANGE. The purist’s purist. The idealist, the dreamer, the man who demands the game be played in a way that makes his heart sing to the soundtrack of angels on string instruments and leaves everyone believing in a better tomorrow.
Just one thing, mate. See that little striker in your team, mate. You might want to tell him to give the falling about like a scarecrow in Storm Arwen a rest — because it is doing no one any favours. Particularly him.
Kyogo Furuhashi is a super talent, integral to the way Postecoglou wants his Celtic side to function. His movement and work rate is a joy. He’s a 24-carat game-changer. His 14 goals attest to that.
Postecoglou was even quoted yesterday as saying that he’s too sharp for his own team-mates at times. That they must become more attuned to his runs and vision.
Sadly, the Celtic manager didn’t appear to be questioned on the negatives in Furuhashi’s make-up that we are seeing all too regularly at the moment.
The interweb is already full of little montages of him doing the dying fly on the pitch. They are quite comedic in their own way. Like some kind of Charlie Chaplin meets Charlie George mash-up.
There’s going down in the area to win a penalty against Livingston at the end of October, toppling with all the dramatic effect of the final scene of The Wicker Man after Ayo Obileye reacted foolishly to an earlier push by giving him a wee slap on the back of the head.
There’s the masterpiece at Dundee a week later — his piece de resistance, no doubt — where he pretty much headbutts a home defender in the chest in a scene more Death In The Afternoon than Dens Park and then hits the deck with the force of a vanquished bull in the final act of the tercio de muerte. No penalty that time, sadly, but 10 out of 10 for artistic impression.
Same goes for the incident with David Bates at the end of last month. Furuhashi jumps with the Aberdeen defender in a 2-1 Celtic win at home, they’re chasing the ball together and, out of the blue, he’s flying through the air faster than a crush barrier in the Parkhead car park on the day of a League Cup upset. And landing with a more emphatic crash.
Even Bates can’t stop himself laughing. But the thing is: this is going beyond being funny. Particularly now that it has happened four times in Celtic’s last seven games.
The latest incident came during the second half of Thursday’s visit of Hearts to Parkhead.
The clips from behind the goal are all over social media. Josip Juranovic puts a shot over the bar, John Souttar changes direction to square up to Furuhashi and, after what seems like nothing, the wee man is back doing the three falls and a submission in the box.
Celtic fans point to a red mark Furuhashi shows on his stomach afterwards, as if to suggest it was inflicted by Souttar. Yes, the Hearts defender confronting the striker as soon as the ball is out of play looks peculiar in isolation too. That’s why it helps to watch back that entire passage of play to gain some context.
As Juranovic prepares to shoot, Souttar and Furuhashi come together in the area. The Japanese flicks his left leg out in what looks very much like an attempt to make contact with his opponent’s calf. That, presumably, is why Souttar goes looking for a bit of ‘afters’.
Listen, that’s all part of the sport. A man’s game, and all that. You take it and you give it out. And, yes, there are plenty of players who will go down easily in the box given the slightest encouragement to win an advantage. That’s all part of it, too.
It crosses a line when you are actively trying to get opposition players sent off, though — and that, rightly or wrongly, looks dangerously like what has been going on with Furuhashi.
Where does that stand with Postecoglou’s stated principles on playing the game the way it is meant to be played?
It is certainly something Furuhashi doesn’t need to be associated with, because there are so many other, hugely positive things in his game that he deserves to be known for other than this.
Calling him a cheat is strong. Legally questionable, too. He is certainly guilty of overreacting, though. Most definitely edging towards the theatrical. And he should be advised to cut it out — because it doesn’t take much to get a reputation in Scotland or for referees to be swung by that.
No one spoke to Postecoglou about that in the after-match TV coverage, though. No one spoke about — or was asked about — the small matter of Hearts forward Barrie McKay being targeted with bottles and coins either. It all added to the sense of disappointment and frustration surrounding what should have been a proper spectacle, this clash between the sides second and third in the table.
For starters, Furuhashi’s winning goal was offside. That was clear. Another example to highlight what a nonsense it is that almost three years after a meeting chaired by the SFA’s Ian Maxwell at McDiarmid Park saw all managers vote unanimously in favour of VAR, we are still waiting for it to be introduced.
Trying to get a paid analyst to offer a strong view on it was like pulling teeth, too. Sky offered no conclusive angles, no computergenerated lines drawn across the pitch. It felt like everyone was trying to brush over the biggest talking point in the aftermath.
Christophe Berra didn’t want to commit himself. Stiliyan Petrov, ex-Celtic, didn’t want anything to do with it either. Kris Boyd did, but the conversation quickly descended into silly joshing over him wearing ‘blue-tinted spectacles’. Unfortunately, former Rangers player Boyd played along and joked that he definitely was.
Is this really the kind of analysis we pay good money to these TV channels for? Pantomime nonsense. Ex-Old Firm players sharing knowing grins and appearing to put greater focus on winding up fans of the opposition than taking you inside the game forensically and objectively.
It often feels that way. People playing to an audience or keeping one eye on making sure they still get bookings for corporate gigs, the after-dinner circuit or fan events at The Hydro.
It is tiring. Just like players being targeted by missiles against a backdrop of unwelcome songs and no one doing anything about it is tiring. Just like referees making blunder after blunder and nothing changing is tiring. Just like Furuhashi taking the focus away from his many positive attributes with such silliness is tiring.
Celtic against Hearts was the showpiece that turned into a bit of a shambles. If anything, it ended up a showcase for so many elements of the poorly cobbled-together package that is our national sport which leave you feeling brassed-off and shortchanged.
In truth, it’s not just Furuhashi who can do better. Everyone involved can.