Former Hoops player Charlie Nicholas has urged supporters not to compare Celtic stars with heroes of the past, following Kyogo Furuhashi’s recent comparisons with Henrik Larsson.
The 61-year-old pundit, a striker back in his playing days, believes it is far too soon to be comparing the Japanese striker to the Swedish legend.
Kyogo scored his 30th goal in all competitions on Sunday at Tynecastle, in turn helping Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou to his second title win in a row in charge of the Glasgow side.
Speaking in his column for the Express, Nicholas said of the 30-goal striker: “Kyogo Furuhashi has been a big player in Celtic’s title win but it is still too early for him to be mentioned in the same breath as Henrik Larsson. The Japanese striker was hardly in the game at Hearts but still came up with the opening goal in the win that clinched the championship. He is very much a key player and component of Ange Postecoglou's Celtic team but you can't compare him to Larsson.
"The Swede's superiority was when he got to season four and he hit a level of consistency that was special. Kyogo is only two years into his Parkhead career. Maybe in another two or three seasons, if he is still producing at this level then he will be viewed in the same light.
“Kyogo is the difference maker with his energy, movement and goals. He was barely involved at Tynecastle on Sunday but still scored. Kyogo has been a prolific scorer and a key player in this Treble charge."
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Nicholas also laughed off comparisons between Postecoglou and European Cup-winning boss Jock Stein, alluding to the fact that the Australian distanced himself from those claims.
Nicholas said: "Anyway, why do we need to constantly compare people? Somebody mentioned Jock Stein to Postecoglou the other day and I loved how he just dismissed it instantly. There is no need to go down that road.”
Nicholas will be hoping to see Postecoglou etch his name in the Celtic history books, as the Australian is one game away from securing his first treble with the club. If he succeeds, he will have overseen the Hoops’ eighth domestic treble in their history, a new world record.
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