Reo Hatate has been reflecting on his frustrations and regrets in an injury plagued season but also explains the manner in which he has coped with his numerous set-backs and how he hopes to finish the campaign on a high winning as many honours as possible at Celtic and having the Celtic support saying the we need him in the team.
Huge boost
We never stopped saying that Reo! His return from injury on Sunday at Livingston was a huge boost. Hatate looked magnificent in his hour long return and that will set him up for a starting place at Ibrox on Sunday. Playing alongside Callum McGregor and Matt O’Riley that trio is surely the best midfield in the country by some distance?
“I have been repeatedly injured and not been able to contribute to the team this season. It’s been very difficult but hopefully it’s behind me now,” Reo Hatate noted in his column in the Japanese media outlet Sportiva.
‘Celtic need Reo Hatate’
“I want to win as many titles as possible and I want to show the Celtic fans a performance that once again makes them think, ‘Celtic need Reo Hatate’.
“During my rehabilitation in preparation for my return, I reviewed everything. This included preparation for competitions, physical strength, training content and diet.
‘My heart sank for a while’
“The most recent injury was my third this season and although it was in a different location, it was a huge shock to have sustained a similar injury over and over again. When I returned to Scotland after the Asian Cup, my heart sank for a while.
“At that point, I will admit, I was feeling very depressed. However, that doesn’t mean I cut corners in my rehab or that I neglected my daily life. I was doing my best in everything but, to put it simply, I just wasn’t motivated and had no energy,” Reo added.
‘A long detour’
“There are very few people who have everything going well in their life. What seems like a long detour to you often turns out to be a shortcut. There are times when I have thought I didn’t have to experience something. But later I realise I was glad I had.
“The same goes for injuries. I realised that, whether you think it’s a waste of time or whether you can even use that time to your advantage, depends on your own way of thinking and how you perceive it.”
