Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has successfully utilised his J-League connections during his Parkhead tenure thus far, having bolstered his ranks sufficiently with the signings of Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi over the last 18 months or so.

The former Yokohama Marinos may well have missed a trick not landing another hidden gem from Japan, however, with the 57-year-old having seemingly been interested in signing current Brighton and Hove Albion forward, Kaoru Mitoma, back in the summer of 2021.

Reports in his homeland suggested that the winger was a potential target for the one-time Australia head coach, while The Athletic also earmarked him as a player that the Hoops could well target, having scored 30 goals and registered 20 assists in just 62 games for Kawasaki Frontale.

As it proved, the 5 foot 10 speedster was ultimately snapped by the Seagulls for a reported fee of just £4.5m that same summer, before going on to spend a season on loan at Belgian outfit Union Saint-Gilloise, providing 12 goal involvements in just 29 games for the Pro League side.

Having since finally linked up with his parent club, the £10k-per-week gem has begun to shine for Roberto De Zerbi’s side, having scored twice and registered one assist in just 11 outings so far this term, notably scoring in a 3-1 win over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup last month.

The “quality” asset – as described by teammate Pascal Gross – has subsequently shown his class on the global stage at the World Cup in Qatar, having taken the tournament “by storm”, in the words of journalist Charlie Haffenden.

The 25-year-old was notably integral in the comeback victory over Germany in Japan’s opening group game, having made a “magnificent” impact off the bench – according to ITV commentator Ally McCoist – after playing his part in the build-up to Ritsu Doan’s equaliser with a threaded pass for Takumi Minamino.

The fleet-footed gem was then again a vital part of the shock triumph over Spain to help secure top spot for Hajime Moriyasu’s side, having teed up Ao Tanaka for the game’s controversial, winning goal with a clever pull-back from the left flank.

A ‘major threat’ in that victory – according to 90min’s Tom Gott – Mitoma also showcased his defensive strength throughout the tournament as a whole, having averaged 1.8 tackles per game from his four appearances.

Although a penalty shootout miss against Croatia may have brought the competition to a sour end for the dynamic asset, his all-round form for both club and country of late has been undoubtedly eye-catching, as he is now said to be worth around £8.6m, according to CIES Football Observatory.

As such, it may well be a real source of frustration that Postecoglou could not get a deal secured 18 months ago, with Mitoma likely to have flourished at Paradise in a similar manner to that of his compatriots.