Celtic's Japanese quartet Kyogo Furuhashi, Yosuke Ideguchi, Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate have led tributes to Hoops hero Shunsuke Nakamura after the free-kick maestro announced his retirement this week.
Nakamura spent four years at Parkhead between 2005 and 2009 as part of a 26-year strong career in football. And he played his last ever competitive match on Sunday for Yokohama FC back in his homeland where he featured for the opening hour in a dramatic 4-3 away win over Roasso Kumamoto.
Upon the full time whistle, all players and staff wore T-shirts with the message "THANK YOU SHUNSUKE" as a surprise in a gesture that shows how highly regarded Nakamura is and led to a lot of emotional team-mates. And the current Hoops stars were also feeling it as they hailed the 44-year-old as an inspiration.
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Kyogo was one of the first of Celtic's present squad to congratulate his fellow countrymen. He said: "Thank you for everything Shunsuke. We wish you all the best."
And the lesser-spotted Idegushi also hailed Nakamura as an inspiration. He said: "Shunsuke Nakamura, thank you for your long and active career. Thank you very much for your many inspirations."
While Maeda added: "Nakamura, thank you for your many years of great achievement in your professional career. Thank you for making Japanese football more exciting. We will do our best to lead from now on."
Last of all, midfield general Hatate revealed a touching moment where Nakamura invited him out for food during the off-season which left a lasting memory on him and made him appreciate the honour to represent Ange Postecoglou's side.
"Shunsuke Nakamura, thank you for all your hard work over the years," said Hatate. "Thank you for all the wonderful inspirations you gave us. I was personally invited to dinner during the off-season. After talking with you, I felt much better and understood the importance of playing for Celtic.
"I've really admired you for a long time. You were my star. You have been inspiring me for a long time, and I will do my best to be the next player who can inspire someone else. Thank you for your hard work over the years."
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