Japan international Daizen Maeda has taken his Celtic philosophy to the World Cup as the forward insists he will continue his high pressing tactics against Croatia.
The Samurai Blue face a stern test in the knockout stage against Croatia as Maeda prepares to give teammate Josip Juranovic a difficult afternoon in the Middle East and push for the quarter-final stage. The forward has harried and hassled defenders at Qatar 2022 and played a key role in Japan escaping the group stage ahead of Germany and Costa Rica, and is unshakable in his Ange Postecoglou influenced approach to games.
Speaking ahead of the showdown with Croatia, Maeda insisted he would not give up his relentless approach to games and pressing high to conserve energy during the packed tournament fixture schedule. The 25-year-old also insisted that his beliefs in how to play the game were more important than netting goals as he continues the vital role he plays for the Scottish Premiership leaders at the World Cup.
Ahead of facing Luka Modric and co, the Celtic star told the Japanese media: "Of course, I'm a forward, so I want to score goals. I have belief in the way I play. I always want to score goals, but if I do my best for the team, the goal will come someday. If I keep doing that, chances will come, including chasing the loose ball.
"I don't know if it's a lot or a little (of running). But if it helps the team, I think it's necessary. I myself don't feel like I'm running out of gas, so I'm going to go as far as I can. Even if I do chase the loose ball by myself I am addicted to it because the team is following me. We are able to play this kind of game because we are doing tactics as a team, challenging ourselves and succeeding."
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