Celtic told to sanction January transfer for €14m forward

Cameron Smith

24 Nov 2025 05:07 CST
3 min read

Ex-Celtic defender Charlie Mulgrew believes his former club should sell Daizen Maeda in January if he makes it clear that he would like to leave.

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The Japan international was keen to secure a Celtic Park departure over the summer, however the Scottish giants blocked an exit on Transfer Deadline Day due to a lack of time to sign a suitable replacement.

Current ETV

Daizen Maeda

F (CL)

Celtic

Daizen Maeda

F (CL)

Celtic

ETV Range

€12.2M - €14.9M

Maeda won the Scottish Premiership Player of the Season award last term, after scoring 16 goals and providing seven assists in 30 appearances in the competition throughout the 2024-25 campaign, and several clubs are expected to pursue a deal during the winter window.

Premier League teams such as Brentford, Everton and Leeds United have all been linked with a mid-season move for the 28-year-old striker, although Celtic are only likely to sanction a sale in January if they have lined up a successor.

While Maeda has been an integral player since his arrival at Celtic in 2022, Mulgrew believes an exit could be the best solution for all parties.

Daizen Maeda to leave Celtic?

“Maeda is a big one,” Mulgrew admitted to Go Radio (via Glasgow World). “If the new manager, does he keep Maeda? Is he getting let go? Martin O’Neill seems to have sort of got a tune back out of him, got him working hard, back to his old self.

“But you can’t keep a player for too long if they don’t want to be there, and you shouldn’t, because you won’t get the best out of him, anyway.

“I think, if he doesn’t want to be there, that’s a conversation that needs to be had. If he doesn’t, you should let him go and reinvest the money in more players like that.

“Who made the final decision not to let him go? It would be interesting. But he is a player, we said at the time, ‘he can’t go anywhere.’ It’s not like any of us thought that he should have gone.

“Maeda’s performances have been largely poor, but that doesn’t mean the new manager can’t change matters because you never know what happens in football.”

Maeda has just over 18 months remaining on his current contract at Celtic, while his Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) stands at €13.5 million - the fourth-highest of any player in the Scottish top flight.