Andy Halliday sparks major Celtic debate and claims top man is undervalued by fans

Daily Record

23-04-2025

Andy Halliday claims Reo Hatate is underappreciated by Celtic fans and warned: "You won't realise what you had until he's gone". Hatate has been at his sizzling best in recent weeks, following up his brace against Kilmarnock with a hat-trick of assists in the 5-0 Hampden thrashing of St Johnstone . The Japan star, 27, has often split opinion amongst the Parkhead faithful, with some supporters criticising the playmaker for blowing hot and cold. But Motherwell ace Halliday reckons Hatate is in a league of his own in Scotland and believes he deserves more respect from Hoops fans. Asked who his top performer of the weekend was, Halliday told Clyde 1 Superscoreboard: "I'm giving it to the best midfielder in the league, Reo Hatate. "He's so undervalued and so underappreciated from Celtic fans to be honest with you. "He's one of the players that I don't think they'll appreciate until he's gone and I thought he was outstanding at the weekend. "I thought he was so involved in everything good that Celtic did and he leaves the pitch with three assists. "The only thing that his performance was missing and that he would probably have deserved as well was a goal." Hatate was named in the PFA Scotland Premiership Team of the Year as part of a midfield trio along with Celtic skipper Callum McGregor and Rangers maestro Nico Raskin. Serial-winner McGregor is widely regarded as one of - if not the best - players in Scotland. But ex-Rangers man Halliday says Hatate is a class above. He said: "Listen, it's a good argument because they are two fantastic players. Callum McGregor has been doing it for so long, so it's very hard to argue that due to the period of time that he's been dominating that midfield area. "For me, I don't think anyone else in Celtic's team can do what Reo Hatate does, and I don't think there's an attribute that he doesn't have. "I think he's so industrious off the ball and on the ball he's so good in tight areas. He'll run in behind, he's unselfish, he can score a goal from outside the box, he makes darts to the back post from inside the box. "Callum McGregor's been somebody who has been such a great servant for Celtic. He does that deep-lying midfielder role so well, which has not always been his position. "But what I think he does very well when he plays that role is that he's still so proactive and willing to get forward to join attacks. "It's a decent argument between both but I'm still edging towards Hatate."