Jorge Sampaoli has distanced himself from Kyogo Furuhashi’s move to Rennes, insisting he had no say in the Japanese striker’s £10million transfer from Celtic.
Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi arrives at the stadium before the match Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
The former Rennes boss, who was sacked just days after Kyogo arrived in January, has made it clear that the signing was not his decision and reflects broader issues within the French club’s management.
Kyogo’s time in Ligue 1 has so far been underwhelming. He’s struggled for minutes, clocking just 113 minutes of football since making the move from Parkhead and is yet to find the back of the net for his new club. [Transfermarkt]
Sampaoli didn’t hold back when discussing the situation, accusing Rennes’ hierarchy of failing to back his vision for the team.
“The owner of the club is a very important person in France and, frankly, the club was not up to the expectations that I had compared to the market,” he said to RecordSport.
“The sports director decided to make a transfer window that had nothing to do with what we needed.
“We preferred to cut the bridges. I could not represent a team which I had not chosen the players in the winter transfer window.
“We even talked about players who have already played with us to change the story more easily, but we were not listened to.”
Kyogo, who left Celtic in search of game time at a higher level that would see him push for regular inclusion in the Japan national team, may now be questioning the wisdom of the move.
While he did earn a call-up shortly after joining Rennes, his lack of minutes and goals raises real concerns about his future at the club especially now with a new managerial regime that also played no part in bringing the Japanese striker over to France.
He could find himself on the move again in the summer if his situation doesn’t improve.
