Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will have been relieved to have seen Daizen Maeda pop up in stoppage time to claim all three points for the Hoops against Motherwell on Sunday.
The Glasgow giants were 2-1 down heading into the final 25 minutes and needed goals from Benjamin Nygren and Maeda to complete a comeback at Parkhead.
Michel-Ange Balikwisha, as shown in the highlights above, registered his first goal involvement for the club with his assist for the winning goal at the end of the game.
Ranking Celtic’s wide players this season
Maeda has to rank at the top of Celtic’s wide players this season because he has produced the most quality in front of goal with two goals and two assists in the Scottish Premiership, per WhoScored.
Celtic’s wingers in the 25/26 Premiership
Player (appearances)
Goals
Assists
Daizen Maeda (7)
2
2
Michel-Ange Balikwisha (4)
0
1
Sebastian Tounekti (3)
0
0
Hyun-jun Yang (3)
0
0
James Forrest (7)
0
0
As you can see in the table above, the Japan international is the only out-and-out winger who has scored a goal for the Hoops in the league this season. Nygren has played out wide at times, but has predominantly played in a central midfield position.
Sebastian Tounekti may not have a goal or an assist to his name in the Premiership, but he has excited supporters with his direct play out wide, completing 14 dribbles in five matches, per Sofascore.
He needs to add more goals and assists to his game if he wants to overtake Maeda as the best winger at the club, though, particularly when you consider that a winger let go by the Hoops this summer is now outperforming him.
The Celtic loanee who is outperforming Sebastian Tounekti
Rodgers ditched Luis Palma during the summer transfer window by sending him out on loan to Lech Poznan, with an option for the Polish side to make it permanent at the end of the season.
The Honduras international, who spent the second half of last term on loan at Olympiacos, fell out of favour at Parkhead despite a fairly impressive record when selected.
Palma racked up ten goals and ten assists in 48 appearances in all competitions for the Hoops, per Transfermarkt, which is a very respectable return for a winger.
Given how Celtic’s wingers have performed at the top end of the pitch this season, Rodgers could currently do with a player like Palma who can provide goals and assists on a regular basis.
The 25-year-old star has already fired in four goals and assisted three goals in 12 appearances for Lech Poznan, per Transfermarkt, whilst Tounekti has one goal and zero assists in ten outings in all competitions for Hammarby and Celtic combined.
This shows that Palma, who was described as a “magic” player by Peter Grant, has outperformed the Tunisia international with more goals and more assists from a left wing position.
Tounekti is exciting to watch and can get supporters off their feet in a way that Palma was unable to because of his impressive dribbling, but he needs to add the goals and assists that the Honduran star has proven that he can offer.
Therefore, at this moment in time, Rodgers may rue not giving the Lech Poznan star more of a chance to establish himself on the wing for the Hoops, because he is now out on loan and outperforming the club’s new £5m winger.
