Celtic forward Daizen Maeda could be on the move in the January transfer window after it was claimed that he is open to leaving the Scottish giants.
Journalist Graeme Bailey reported earlier this week that the Japan international is “ready to leave” the club, which comes after the Hoops blocked a potential transfer away from Parkhead in the summer.
It remains to be seen how much money the Scottish Premiership champions could rake in for him in January, but he is currently the most valuable member of the squad.
The most valuable players in the Celtic squad
Per Transfermarkt, Maeda is valued at £13m at this moment in time. That is at least £1m more than any other member of the squad, which speaks to how valuable he is to the team.
The Japanese forward scored 33 goals and provided 12 assists in 51 matches in all competitions (Transfermarkt) last term, hence why he is so highly valued and why losing him in January would be a big blow.
|
Celtic’s five most valuable players |
|
|---|---|
|
Player |
Market value |
|
Daizen Maeda |
£13m |
|
Cameron Carter-Vickers |
£12m |
|
Reo Hatate |
£11m |
|
Arne Engels |
£8.5m |
|
Alistair Johnston |
£8m |
|
Valuations via Transfermarkt (rounded to nearest £500k) |
|
As you can see in the table above, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Reo Hatate, Arne Engels, and Alistair Johnston make up the rest of the top five most valuable players at the club.
Celtic’s top goalscorer in all competitions, Benjamin Nygren, does not feature within the top five most valuable players, but he could break into that list if he keeps up his current form, as the Hoops already appear to have hit the jackpot with him.
Celtic have hit the jackpot with Benjamin Nygren
The Scottish giants signed the central midfielder from Nordsjaelland for a reported fee of £1.3m in the summer transfer window to bolster Brendan Rodgers’ options out wide and in midfield.
Celtic were able to agree a cut-price deal for the Sweden international because his contract with the Danish club was due to expire at the end of 2025, which means that they were able to take advantage of the situation to land a bargain.
The left-footed star, who was described as “fearless” by international teammate Alexander Isak, has produced quality performances on the pitch in the Premiership that prove that the Hoops hit the jackpot with this signing.
|
25/26 Premiership |
Benjamin Nygren |
Percentile rank vs CMs |
|---|---|---|
|
xG |
2.82 |
Top 1% |
|
xG on target |
4.37 |
Top 1% |
|
Goals |
4 |
Top 1% |
|
Shots on target |
9 |
Top 1% |
|
xA |
2.36 |
Top 4% |
|
Chances created |
18 |
Top 1% |
|
Assists |
1 |
Top 33% |
As you can see in the table above, Nygren has been one of the best midfielders in the division, if not the best, at scoring and creating goals this season.
The 24-year-old star, who is the club’s top scorer in all competitions with four goals (Transfermarkt), has scored four goals and created 2.6 chances per game across seven outings in the Premiership, per Sofascore.
Whilst these statistics show that Celtic have hit the jackpot on Nygren because of his outstanding performances on the pitch, the club have also struck gold with his market valuation.
Transfermarkt currently values the Sweden international at £5.2m. This is 300% more than the £1.3m fee that the Hoops reportedly paid for him in the summer, which suggests that they could make a significant profit on him if they decided to cash in.
Therefore, Celtic have hit the jackpot with this signing because it has already worked out on the pitch, and the finances behind it make it all the more impressive.
