Celtic came away deserved 4-3 victors in a thrilling pre-season friendly with Manchester City in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Nicolas Kuhn, Kyogo Furuhashi, and Luis Palma got the goals for the Hoops as they continued to dust off their cobwebs ahead of the new campaign.
Brendan Rodgers named as close to a full-strength starting eleven against the English champions as he possibly could.
Kasper Schmeichel debuted in goal while Callum McGregor, Greg Taylor, and Reo Hatate all got game time.
The Japanese midfielder looked inventive as ever in the middle of the park, breaking the lines with some creative passes.
He played until the 64th minute, with Odin Thiago Holm coming on in his place.
It was a positive showing from Hatate, but even more encouraging was some of the footage of the teams coming out of the tunnel at halftime.
Indeed, as the players walked back onto the pitch for the second 45, Rodgers could be seen speaking closely with Hatate, clearly helping him in the development of his game:
Always really liked Rodgers man management 🍀 pic.twitter.com/f1cS0XcCuZ
— •A1• (@A1_CELTIC) July 24, 2024
The manager has previously not held back in his criticism of Hatate, but the 26-year-old has quality.
Rodgers knows this and will look to nurture and maximise his talents in the new season.
