Cameron Carter-Vickers praises Celtic sharp-shooter Kyogo Furuhashi

Cameron Carter-Vickers has spoken about Kyogo Furuhashi’s “special” goalscoring abilities as the Celtic striker basks again in the glory of a cup final double at Hampden Park.

The 28-year-old Japan international notched twice from close range against Rangers on Sunday to help Ange Postecoglou’s men retain the League Cup trophy with Alfredo Morelos’ response for the Light Blues proving only to be a consolation.

Furuhashi, who has firmly established himself as a fans’ favourite since signing from Vissel Kobe in 2021, also scored twice when Celtic beat Hibernian in last season’s final and the repeat performance came as little surprise to Carter-Vickers.

The centre-back has a regular close-up view of the tireless Hoops forward, who now has 24 goals in all competitions this season, and in assessing his talents, Carter-Vickers said: “He is always in the right spot at the right time and he seems to score so many tap-ins like that.

“But it’s something that he works on and it is something that he has which is quite special.

“I train against him every day and I am fully aware of his movement and how clever he can be and the runs he makes. It is good to play with players like that.”

While skipper James Tavernier apologised to the Rangers fans for their side’s performance in what was Michael Beale’s first defeat as Light Blues boss, it was another show of strength from Celtic as they now look towards the domestic treble.

The Hoops have lost one domestic game this season and lead Rangers by nine points at the top of the cinch Premiership with a Scottish Cup quarter-final clash with Hearts at Tynecastle looming next month.

“It is good to get the win in this cup,” said Carter-Vickers.

“We don’t really think too far ahead, we just try and focus on the next game and our performance.

“It is always a good confidence boost when you win stuff. We are fully aware that this competition is done now and there are two more trophies up for grabs.

“We work hard throughout the week since the manager has been here in order to prepare ourselves.

“It is just about staying focused on how we want to play and to try and perform to our level and if we do that we can get the result.”