‘Strong desire to play’ - Forgotten Celtic man Yosuke Ideguchi opens up on uncertain Parkhead future

Yosuke Ideguchi has revealed he doesn’t know if he will return to Celtic in January when his loan spell ends - admitting he has not had any contact from the Parkhead club.

The Japanese international is currently back in his homeland with J1 League club Avispa Fukouka after a frustrating 12 months in Glasgow. He suffered an ankle break in one of his first games back in March, but the 27-year-old has since enjoyed a regular run of in the starting XI over the last few months.

Ideguchi - still under contract with the Scottish champions for another two-and-a-half years - has been praised for his performances and has even been deployed as a STRIKER after several injuries to key players.

It remains unclear if the defensive midfielder will have any future at Parkhead under Brendan Rodgers, having made just six first-team appearances during previous boss Ange Postecoglou’s reign. Ideguchi admits he’s in the dark about what the Hoops’ plans are for him as he nears the end of his season-long loan stint, with the J-League season ending in December.

He said: “At the moment I am only concentrating on trying to finish as high up the J-League table as I can with Avispa Fukuoka. I was happy to be offered the chance of games here at a time when I wasn’t able to play any matches at Celtic and I had a strong desire to play.

“There weren’t many clubs who wanted me, but they approached me, so I decided to go right away. It was an instant decision.

“As for next season, I don’t know what’s going to happen or whether I will still stay here. At the moment, there’s no point in looking too far into the future. And that’s why I will do everything I can for the team while I am here.”