Celtic man was finished under Rodgers, now he can be undroppable for Nancy
Celtic’s wait for a European away win is over.
On Thursday night, despite falling behind inside 11 minutes, the Hoops fought back to beat Feyenoord 3-1 at De Kuip; Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren the scorers on a famous night in Rotterdam.
Before this, the Celts had failed to win any of their last 16 European fixtures on the road, dating back four years.
In fact, since reaching the UEFA Cup Final under Martin O’Neill in 2003, they have won only six times on the continent, excluding qualifiers, enjoying wins over Spartak Moskva, Anderlecht, Rosenborg, Lazio, Ferencváros and now Feyenoord across the last 22 seasons.
In terms of this season, the victory propels the Celts up to 21st in the gigantic Europa League table, a major boost to their hopes of reaching the knockout stages, with games against Roma, Bologna and then Utrecht still to come.
So, which Celtic star looked like an £100m player during this win at De Kuip?
Celtic's new manager latest
Since returning to the club on an interim basis, O’Neill could hardly have done much better.
He has won three Premiership matches out of three, ousted Rangers in the League Cup semi-finals and now claimed a memorable European victory in the Netherlands; the shellacking against Midtjylland in Herning the only blot on his copybook.
Nevertheless, for how much longer will he remain in interim charge?
Well, the 73 year old, alongside Shaun Maloney, will still be at the helm for Sunday’s clash with Hibernian at Easter Road, but could that be the final game of their tenure?
That’s because, according to widespread reports, the club are now in advanced talks with Columbus Crew manager Wilfried Nancy, with some optimistic that the Frenchman could be in place in time for next Wednesday’s clash with Dundee.
Considering they take on current Premiership leaders Hearts and then the side top of Serie A Roma thereafter, the board will be desperate to get Nancy in as quickly as possible.
Assuming the Frenchman was watching Thursday’s win over Feyenoord, potentially while enjoying some Thanksgiving food in Ohio, one player in particular surely will have caught his eye.
Celtic's best player vs Feyenoord
Towards the end of Brendan Rodgers’ tenure, Reo Hatate found himself no longer a guaranteed starter, only on the bench for the Europa League home defeat to Braga, before not getting on at all during a dismal goalless draw with Hibs in September.
Nevertheless, having been made a key figure under O’Neill, he was the star of the show in Rotterdam.
Hatate spectacularly set up Yang’s equaliser before, soon after, coolly slotting home the second, rolling the ball into an unguarded net from long-range after some trademark closing down by Daizen Maeda forced Timon Wellenreuther into a catastrophic error.
Overall, the midfield maestro completed 89% of his passes, took two shots, created one big chance and registered nine ball recoveries, underlining that he was everywhere.
After a 3-3 draw with Rangers at Ibrox last year, Brendan Rodgers asserted that Hatate “gives it away too much for my liking”, labelling him “sloppy’, a sign of his decline in form and importance.
Now though, he is playing at a comparable level to Enzo Fernandez, according to FBref, who note that the players are statistically and stylistically similar among those in their position across Europe.
That is a sign of Hatate’s recent revival, not least with Fernandez having not too long ago been signed by Chelsea for a fee of around £107m from Benfica.
Such a comparison is no unwarranted either, with Hatate arguably putting in his best performance of the season against Feyenoord, while operating in a Fernandez-esque, more advanced midfield berth
Hatate – last 365 days
Stats
Hatate
Non-penalty Goals
0.13
Assists
0.26
Shot-creating actions
2.31
Pass completion
83%
Progressive passes
4.31
Progressive carries
1.16
Successful take-ons
0.77
Tackles
1.28
Interceptions
0.51
via FBref
Meantime, the Japanese star is proving just what a goal threat he is in Europe too, scoring against both Midtjylland and Feyenoord, also registering an assist at De Kuip this week.
Given how impressive Hatate has been since first arriving at Parkhead almost four years ago, it is frankly a surprise that a Premier League club has not come in and poached him.
Celtic supporters will hope that remains the case, with the 28-year-old likely to be a central, undroppable figure when Nancy does finally arrive.
As good as Hatate: Celtic flop showed he can be "world class" under Nancy
Celtic beat Feyenoord 3-1 at De Kuip in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday, and one player showed his “world class’ potential, as good as Reo Hatate.
ByBen Gray Nov 28, 2025