It remains to be seen whether or not Kyogo Furuhashi is called up by Japan manager Moriyasu Hajikazu for the matches against China and Saudi Arabia, games that will be crucial in shaping the World Cup ambitions of the Japanese side.

There is uncertainty over the player’s participation with his national manager expressing doubts over fitness following the December hamstring injury. There is also some concern around current Covid protocols.

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Yet, while there has been much chat around the potential involvement of Celtic’s talisman and that of Tom Rogic who is also due to represent Australia, with the timing of the games ruling them out of playing against Rangers in the rearranged derby fixture, the reality is that Celtic can ill afford to get too hung up on anything that is a fortnight down the road.

Ange Postecoglou’s side takes on Hibs this evening as they welcome a full house back into the stadium. There will be much enthusiasm with supporters eagerly anticipating a return to action following the premature winter break.

Celtic’s current league position would bring into sharp focus the need to hit the ground running following the resumption of games. There can be no easing into things given the lack of a safety net that exists. This time a year ago was the catalyst for the season to unfurl quite dramatically after the return from an ill-timed trip to Dubai resulted in a home draw against Hibs that came on the back of 13 first team players self-isolating.

This time Celtic pick up in a significantly stronger position than where they left off. The arrivals of Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi as well as Johnny Kenny ensure that there is scope for changing and tweaking now with Maeda and Hatate possibly in line to start this evening given the injuries to Kyogo and David Turnbull.

Certainly, though, while Celtic will have their sights set on the forthcoming Rangers game there is a clear need to ensure that they go into it with momentum at their back. One of the great myths in Scottish football is that the form book goes out the window for the games between Celtic and Rangers. The reality is that invariable it is the form team with confidence, belief and a head of steam who nearly always take the plaudits.

Celtic will know that a win against Rangers would blow the title race wide open but until they get to that one it would be wise to keep the focus on the here and now. Shaun Maloney has shown himself to be an astute and articulate coach. He has made a winning start to life at Hibs and will be keen to sustain that as he heads back to his former club this evening.