'Who are these brave people?' Postecoglou defends Furuhashi from critics

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has defended forward Kyogo Furuhashi from accusations that he exaggerates contact from opponents, saying the player’s critics are “ignorant”.

Furuhashi joined Celtic in the summer from Vissel Kobe and has made an instant impact, scoring 14 goals in 23 games across all competitions.

The forward has found himself under the spotlight recently, with a former English Premier League referee suggesting he “exaggerates” contact and other pundits suggesting he goes to ground too easily.

Postecoglou was dismissive of the comments, saying that the player’s slight build was a factor. The Celtic boss said that the player had been a good addition to Scottish football and that other clubs would be happy to have the attacker.

He asked: “Who are these brave people, these warriors, who are out there accusing people?”

“Kyogo’s the size of a jockey and he’s playing against people who are almost a foot taller than him and all these brave warriors are casting aspersions.

“I haven’t read it. I won’t read it.

If you end up in arguments with ignorant people you’ll eventually become one of them. I kind of ignore those narratives.

“I think Kyogo’s been great for our football club and he’s been great for Scottish football.

“I would be surprised if anybody didn’t want someone of his character and his playing ability in their club or in their league.”