Kyogo Furuhashi

Kyogo Furuhashi

Furuhashi with Celtic in 2023
Personal information
Date of birth	(1995-01-20) 20 January 1995 (age 29)
Place of birth	Ikoma, Nara, Japan
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Celtic
Number	8
Youth career
	Sakuragaoka FC
	Athpegas Ikoma FC
2010–2012	Kokoku High School
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2016	Chuo University
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2017–2018	FC Gifu	72	(21)
2018–2021	Vissel Kobe	95	(46)
2021–	Celtic	111	(61)
International career^‡
2019–	Japan	22	(5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 29 December 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024 (UTC)

Kyogo Furuhashi (古橋 亨梧, Furuhashi Kyōgo, born 20 January 1995), often known mononymously as Kyogo, is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Scottish Premiership club Celtic and the Japan national team.

Club career

FC Gifu

Kyogo Furuhashi joined J2 League club FC Gifu in 2017.

Vissel Kobe

On 1 August 2018, it was confirmed that Furuhashi would join the J1 League club Vissel Kobe for the rest of the 2018 season.^[2][3]

In the club's Emperor's Cup semi-final match against Shimizu S-Pulse on 21 December 2019, Furuhashi scored Vissel's third goal to seal a 3–1 victory and a spot in their first ever major cup final.^[4] Vissel would go on to defeat Kashima Antlers in the final on 1 January 2020.^[5]

Furuhashi scored Vissel Kobe's second goal in their 2020 Japanese Super Cup victory over Yokohama F. Marinos on 8 February 2020.^[6] Four days later in Vissel Kobe's first ever match in a continental competition against Malaysia Super League champions JDT, Furuhashi scored again in a 5–1 victory.^[7] Furuhashi netted the lone goal in the second group stage match against Suwon Samsung Bluewings on 19 February.^[8]

Celtic

2021–22 season

On 16 July 2021, Furuhashi joined Scottish Premiership side Celtic for £4.5 million, signing a four-year deal.^[9] He scored his first goal for the club on his debut against Jablonec in the UEFA Europa League third qualifying round on 5 August 2021.^[10] Three days later, Furuhashi scored his first Scottish Premiership goals, netting a 67-minute hat-trick in a 6–0 win against Dundee.^[11][12] He followed up his excellent run of form by scoring against Hearts,^[13] and again in the UEFA Europa League against AZ Alkmaar.^[14]

Furuhashi picked up an injury while on international duty with Japan in September, but returned after five games,^[15] scoring on 3 October in a 2–1 victory against Aberdeen^[16] and netting the only goal of the game in a home league win against Hearts on 2 December.^[17] On 19 December 2021, Furuhashi scored twice against Hibernian in the final of the Scottish League Cup. The game ended 2–1, winning Furuhashi his first trophy with Celtic.^[18]

2022–23 season

On 28 August 2022, Furuhashi scored a hat-trick in a 9–0 away win against Dundee United.^[19] A month later, Furuhashi made his UEFA Champions League debut in a 3–0 home defeat against Real Madrid.^[20]

On 2 January 2023, Furuhashi scored his first derby goal against Rangers to salvage a 2–2 away draw.^[21]

On 26 February, Furuhashi scored a second consecutive League Cup finals double, now against Rangers in the 2023 Scottish League Cup Final.^[22]

On 7 May, Furuhashi scored his 50th goal for Celtic in all competitions in a 2–0 away win against Heart of Midlothian.^[23]

On 2 June, Furuhashi won the Scottish Premiership Golden Boot award, after scoring 27 goals for Celtic over the course of the season.^[24] He also won the league's player of the year award.^[25]

2023–24 season

In July 2023, he signed a new four-year contract with Celtic.^[26]

On 3 September 2023, Furuhashi scored his sixth derby goal against Rangers in a 1–0 away win at Ibrox Stadium.^[27] On 5 October 2023, he scored his first goal in the Champions League against Lazio in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. On 26 October, he also scored the opening goal in the third match against Atlético Madrid and on 30 December, he scored a wonder goal to help Celtic win 2–1 against Rangers.

2024–25 season

On 1 September 2024, Furuhashi scored his eighth Old Firm goal against Rangers in eleven games, in a 3–0 win at home.

International career

Furuhashi earned his first Japan call-up against Venezuela on 19 November 2019 for the Kirin Cup. He made his debut as in their 1–4 home defeat at the Panasonic Stadium Suita.^[28]

Despite his form at Celtic, Furuhashi was not included in the Japan squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. This came as a surprise to many supporters and media outlets at the time, where Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu justified his decision by saying: "We selected players who will be on the same wavelength as a team, who will be able to move and link up together, who through their organisation will be able to make use of their individual strengths".^[29][30]

Furuhashi was also excluded from the Japanese squad for the 2024 AFC Asian Cup. Moriyasu said: "It was extremely difficult [to leave Furuhashi out]. It's just really painful to make decisions like these [...] Regarding the criteria for this tournament, I went for the ones I thought had the most individual strength. I wanted players who can overcome situations individually and have to have the ability to connect with people and work together with those around them. We picked players who can improve their abilities not only by themselves, but also by working with their team-mates."^[31]

On 7 November 2024, Kyogo was finally called up again for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, joined by Celtic teammates Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate.^[32]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 29 December 2024^[33][34]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup[b]		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
FC Gifu	2017	J2 League	42	6	2	0	–		–		–		44	6
	2018		26	11	1	0	–		–		–		27	11
	Total		68	17	3	0	–		–		–		71	17
Vissel Kobe	2018	J1 League	13	5	0	0	0	0	–		–		13	5
	2019		31	10	4	2	1	0	–		–		36	12
	2020		30	12	–		1	0	8[c]	4	1[d]	1	40	17
	2021		21	15	1	1	0	0	–		–		22	16
	Total		95	42	5	3	2	0	8	4	1	1	111	50
Celtic	2021–22	Scottish Premiership	20	12	1	0	3	3	9[e]	5	–		33	20
	2022–23		36	27	5	4	3	3	6[f]	0	–		50	34
	2023–24		38	14	5	3	1	0	6[f]	2	–		50	19
	2024–25		17	8	0	0	2	1	6[f]	1	–		25	10
	Total		111	61	11	7	9	7	27	8	–		158	83
Career total			274	120	19	10	11	7	35	12	1	1	341	150

1. Includes Emperor's Cup, Scottish Cup
2. Includes J.League Cup, Scottish League Cup
3. Appearances in AFC Champions League
4. Appearance in Japanese Super Cup
5. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
6. Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International

As of match played 19 November 2024^[35]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Japan	2019	1	0
	2021	11	3
	2022	4	0
	2023	5	2
	2024	1	0
Total		22	5

Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Furuhashi goal.

List of international goals scored by Kyogo Furuhashi

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	30 March 2021	Fukuda Denshi Arena, Chiba, Japan	Mongolia	10–0	14–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
2				11–0
3	7 June 2021	Panasonic Stadium Suita, Suita, Japan	Tajikistan	1–0	4–1	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
4	15 June 2023	Toyota Stadium, Toyota, Japan	El Salvador	6–0	6–0	2023 Kirin Challenge Cup
5	17 October 2023	Noevir Stadium Kobe, Kobe, Japan	Tunisia	1–0	2–0	2023 Kirin Challenge Cup

Honours

Vissel Kobe

• Emperor's Cup (1): 2019
• Japanese Super Cup (1): 2020^[6]

Celtic

• Scottish Premiership (3): 2021–22,^[36] 2022–23,^[37] 2023–24^[38]
• Scottish Cup (2): 2022–23,^[39] 2023–24^[40]
• Scottish League Cup (3): 2021–22,^[41] 2022–23,^[42] 2024–25^[43]

Individual

• PFA Scotland Team of the Year (Premiership): 2021–22,^[44] 2022–23^[45]
• Scottish Premiership top scorer: 2022–23^[46]
• PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year: 2022–23^[47]
• SFWA Footballer of the Year: 2022–23^[48]
• Japan Pro-Footballers Association awards: Best XI (2022, 2023)^[49]

References

1. "National Teams｜JFA｜Japan Football Association".
2. "Kyogo Furuhashi: From early rejection to Andres Iniesta partnership & Celtic stardom". BBC Sport. 8 May 2023.
3. "A world football legend is set to retire – here's what he said about Celtic & Kyogo". The National. 1 October 2024.
4. "Vissel Kobe 3–1 Shimizu S-Pulse". Soccerway. 21 December 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
5. "Andrés Iniesta skippers Vissel Kobe to first trophy in David Villa's final match". AS. 1 January 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
6. "Andres Iniesta lifts Japan Super Cup after nine straight pen misses". ESPN. 8 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
7. "Vissel Kobe (JPN) 5–1 Johor Darul Ta'zim (MAS)". The AFC. 12 February 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
8. "SUWON SAMSUNG BLUEWINGS (KOR) 0–1 VISSEL KOBE (JPN) : Highlights". YouTube (The AFC Hub). 19 February 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
9. "Celtic sign Japan forward Furuhashi". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
10. "First win for new manager Postecoglou". BBC Sport. 5 August 2021. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
11. "Scottish Premiership: Kyogo Furuhashi hits hat-trick as Celtic thrash Dundee". Guardian. 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
12. Duncan, Thomas (8 August 2021). "Celtic 6–0 Dundee". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
13. "BBC Sport Results". BBC Sport.
14. "BBC Sport Results". BBC Sport.
15. Pirie, Mark (11 October 2021). "Kyogo Furuhashi reveals Celtic success secret as he makes bold 'outsmart' opponents claim". Daily Record. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
16. McPheat, Nick (3 October 2021). "Aberdeen 1 – 2 Celtic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
17. "Kyogo Furuhashi's controversial strike gives Celtic narrow win over Hearts". The Guardian. PA Media. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
18. "Hibernian 1–2 Celtic: Kyogo Furuhashi wins Scottish League Cup final for Ange Postecoglou's Celtic". Sky Sports. 19 December 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
19. "Dundee United 0–9 Celtic: Celtic strolled to an incredible record-breaking away league victory by humiliating beleaguered Dundee United to climb back to the top of the Scottish Premiership". BBC Sport. 28 August 2022.
20. "Celtic-Real Madrid | Line-ups | UEFA Champions League 2022/23". UEFA.com. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
21. "Rangers 2–2 Celtic: Kyogo Furuhashi's late strike maintains nine-point lead over Old Firm rivals". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
22. "Rangers Celtic Scottish league cup final match report". The Guardian. PA Media. 26 February 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
23. Watt, Martin (7 May 2023). "Hearts 0–2 Celtic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
24. "Scottish Premiership top scorers 2022–23: Furuhashi, Tavernier, Jota & other players in the race". goal.com. 27 May 2023. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
25. Lancaster, Will (15 May 2023). "Celtic Player of the Year awards in full as Kyogo picks up his first Treble". footballscotland. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
26. "Celtic forward Kyogo signs new four-year deal". skysports.com. Sky Sports. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
27. "Kyogo strikes as Brendan Rodgers masterminds another win at Ibrox". celticfc.com. Celtic FC. 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
28. "SAMURAI BLUE lose final home match of the year 1–4 against Venezuela". JFA. 19 November 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
29. "Celtic's Maeda in Japan squad as duo miss out". BBC Sport. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
30. McDougall, Mark (1 November 2022). "Kyogo and Hatate's World Cup absence explained as Japan boss decision laid bare". footballscotland. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
31. "Japan boss Hajime Moriyasu details 'painful' Kyogo Furuhashi Asian Cup snub". Celtic Way. 10 January 2024.
32. Atkinson, Mark (7 November 2024). "Frozen-out Celtic star dragged back from wilderness and can help secure huge triumph". The Scotsman. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
33. Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑ハンディ版 2018 (NSK MOOK)", 7 February 2018, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411529 (p. 223 out of 289)
34. "Kyogo Furuhashi". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
35. Kyogo Furuhashi at National-Football-Teams.com
36. "Dundee United 1–1 Celtic: Ange Postecoglou's side reclaim league title". BBC Sport. 11 May 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
37. Watt, Martin (7 May 2023). "Heart of Midlothian 0–2 Celtic: Ange Postecoglou's side seal back-to-back titles". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
38. "Celtic crowned Scottish champions with game to spare". BBC Sport. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
39. Duncan, Thomas (3 June 2023). "Celtic 3–1 Inverness CT: Ange Postecoglou's side win Scottish Cup to claim treble". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
40. "Celtic leave it late to beat Rangers and win Scottish Cup". Reuters. 25 May 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
41. "Hibernian 1–2 Celtic". BBC Sport.
42. Lindsay, Clive (25 February 2023). "Viaplay Cup final: Celtic retain trophy in jaw-dropping finale". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
43. "Celtic 3–3 Rangers: Line-ups". BBC Sport. 15 December 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
44. @PFAScotland (26 April 2022). "Your Premiership @PFAScotland Team of the Year" (Tweet). Retrieved 26 April 2022 – via Twitter.
45. Cassidy, Peter (9 May 2023). "Seven Celtic players in PFA team of the year but star duo miss out". STV Sport. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
46. "Furuhashi: cinch SPFL Top Scorer 2022/23". SPFL. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
47. "Celtic's Kyogo Furuhashi and Caitlin Hayes win PFA Scotland player of the year awards". BBC Sport. 14 May 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
48. "Kyogo crowned SFWA Player of the Year". scottishfwa.com. SFWA. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
49. Japan Pro-Footballers Association awards

External links

• Kyogo Furuhashi on Facebook
• Kyogo Furuhashi on Twitter
• Kyogo Furuhashi on Instagram
• Kyogo Furuhashi on TikTok
• Kyogo at Celtic FC
• Kyogo Furuhashi at National-Football-Teams.com
• Kyogo Furuhashi at J.League (archive) (in Japanese)
• Kyogo Furuhashi at FC Gifu at the Wayback Machine (archived 25 June 2018)