Better than Maeda: Celtic have unearthed a £124m-rated star in the making

Celtic came ever so close to a historic night in Bavaria as they fell just short of taking Bayern Munich all the way to extra-time in the play-off phase of the Champions League.

The Hoops came into the match knowing that it would either take a two-goal win or penalties to get the better of the German giants after they were beaten 2-1 at Parkhead in the first leg last week.

After missing a glut of chances in the first-half, Brendan Rodgers‘ side did take the lead through Nicolas Kuhn when he calmly slotted past Manuel Neuer to make it 1-0.

However, just as the Scottish giants and their supporters thought that they had done enough to secure another 30 minutes of added-time, Alphonso Davies stole a march on Cameron Carter-Vickers to score in the 94th minute to send Bayern through to the last 16.

Kasper Schmeichel made a terrific save from the initial header, after the USA international lost track of his man in the box, and the Canadian defender got goalside of Carter-Vickers to ensure that his attempted clearance hit him and found the back of the net.

Despite being sent out of the competition, there were plenty of positives to take from the performance, including Daizen Maeda’s showing in Munich.

Daizen Maeda’s performance for Celtic against Bayern

The Japan international was selected to start the match as the number nine, with Adam Idah left on the bench and Kyogo Furuhashi sold to Rennes in the January transfer window, with Jota on the left and Kuhn on the right.

It was a bold move by Rodgers, given that Maeda has spent the majority of his Celtic career on the left flank, but it was a tactical choice that appeared to work in the first half.

The Japanese forward’s fleet-footedness and constant desire to put pressure on the opposition made him the ideal centre-forward for this match, as he did not give the Bayern centre-backs or central midfield players a moment’s peace.

Maeda, who won four of his six duels on the night, did spurn two good opportunities in the first half, though, as he failed to get on the end of a brilliant cross from Arne Engels, and then sent an effort high and wide when he could have sent Kuhn through on goal.

The right-footed speedster, however, made up for those mistakes by pressing to win the ball back in the middle of the pitch before sending Kuhn, via the help of a failed tackle, through to make it 1-0.

Whilst it was a good performance from Maeda, due to his pressing work and his play in the build-up to Celtic’s goal, the actual goalscorer was the real star of the attack for the Hoops.

Nicolas Kuhn’s performance against Bayern Munich

The former Bayern Munich academy star, like Maeda, also failed to take a big chance early on in the game when he controlled Jota’s cross and tapped an effort past Neuer that was then easily cleared before it could get near to crossing the line.

However, he went on to make up for that miss by anticipating the mistake from Kim Min-jae and remaining composed to slot past the German icon between the sticks with ease for the opening goal.

As well as scoring, the former Rapid Vienna star also provided an incredibly reliable outlet in possession for the Scottish giants, as he completed 20 of his 22 attempted passes and created one chance.

Kuhn did not shy away from the defensive side of the game, either, with two interceptions, one tackle, and three clearances to help his backline out at times.

Overall, the left-footed forward was even better than Maeda, who only completed 50% (6/12) of his passes, because of his all-round play on and off the ball as well as his moment of quality to score the goal.

Celtic have struck gold with Nicolas Kuhn

Celtic have hit the jackpot with Kuhn because he has developed into an incredible talent and his performances in the Champions League this season have earned him a comparison to a £124m-rated player.

The 25-year-old wizard, who has also produced ten goals and six assists in the Scottish Premiership this term, has offered a big threat coming in off the right flank in Europe for the Hoops.

As you can see in the table above, Kuhn has provided quality as both a scorer and a creator for the Scottish giants, although wasteful finishing from his teammates has prevented him from boasting more assists.

Per FBref, Arsenal sensation Bukayo Saka, who is valued at a whopping £124m by Transfermarkt, is one of the most similar players to the Celtic star in the Champions League this season.

The England international, like Kuhn, has offered a big threat for the Gunners with a return of four goals and two assists in five matches in the competition.

As you can see in the chart above, the two right wingers have been incredibly similar, from a statistical perspective, in the Champions League with their actions in and out of possession.

Away from the statistics, Kuhn is also similar to Saka in the sense that he is also a left-footed player who likes to cut in from the right flank to take shots from range.

The Hoops wizard scored a very Saka-esque goal against Leipzig in the league phase of the competition earlier this season, as shown in the clip above.

Celtic have, therefore, hit the jackpot with Kuhn as they appear to have unearthed a £124m-rated star in the making with their own version of Saka.

Kuhn has proven that he can provide quality on a regular basis at Champions League level against high-quality opposition, like Leipzig and Bayern, and it remains to be seen what his value could soar to if he continues to produce Saka-level performances week-in-week-out.

Of course, the German forward will be unable to show off his skills in Europe until next season, now that Celtic have been knocked out, but he can continue to shine in domestic action for the Scottish giants until the summer transfer window.