SINCE he arrived in Parkhead, Ange Postecoglou has been honest about his intention to revisit the J League in an attempt to bolster Celtic's ranks.
A meticulous man, he won't throw his trawler net into Japanese waters and see what gets caught up in it but rather, given his familiarity with those who ply their trade in the country, spearfish a few specific targets.
One reportedly in his crosshairs is an attacker he knows well and managed at Yokohama F. Marinos: Daizen Maeda.
The 24-year-old is currently the top scorer with 21 goals (six more than Kyogo Furuhashi, who albeit left the league in mid-July) in a division that ends on the first weekend in December, leading to further speculation given Europe's winter window falls in the middle of Japan's close-season.
An inverted left winger who can also play through the middle, Maeda doesn't fit the criteria of the dynamic, powerful and playmaking midfielder Celtic's middle third seems to be yearning for but instead a fast, lethal option to provide competition in the final one.
Jota, Liel Abada, James Forrest, Mikey Johnston and, on occasion, Maeda's compatriot Kyogo are the providers of the depth Celtic have in wide areas at the moment meaning it's probably the deepest, quality-filled area of the squad.
The Portuguese, whom Celtic have an option to buy at the end of the season, currently has the left-winger slot in the palm of his hand but he's different to the potential arrival from the far east.
Jota, a winger who thrives on deception and skill and attempts 10 dribbles per game, has provided the final touch for Celtic six times this season but his main job is to create and proffer the penultimate one.
Maeda isn't likely to cover his boots in white paint; he'd rather cut in from the left and run into the half-space to meet the ball - a territory he's occupied for more than two-thirds of his time on the pitch for the Marinos this season.
The Japan international, whose three caps have all come from the substitutes bench during this summer's Olympic Games, tries to run with the ball less than four times per 90 minutes but he does tally up decent enough underlying numbers creatively to suggest he'd dovetail well with Kyogo and the rest.
Playing under Postecoglou for the first half of the season - 10 of his goals came under the current Celtic boss - Maeda demonstrates an element of clinicality in his game and scores about as often as expected (this term, for instance, he has 21 goals on 20.08 xG).
READ MORE: Celtic's spinal surgery transfer requirements as Angeball focus crucial to rebuild
He is a winger by job title, certainly, but acting as an extra option centrally is absolutely part of the role description Maeda carries out.
Since 2016, he has averaged 3.75 touches in the opposition area while playing as a winger. For context, that falls just in between Forrest's measurements across the past few seasons and Jota's numbers before he joined Celtic.
Space to navigate or manipulate is fertile ground for Maeda's style but, against sides in the Scottish Premiership, that isn't always a foregone conclusion - remember Steve Clarke's Kilmarnock or, perhaps fresher in the memory, David Martindale's Livingston?
Indiscipline in the opposition might be vital for Maeda to succeed if he arrives at Celtic. Ball-watching full-backs or rushes of blood to the heads of centre-backs are the sort of incidents that allow him to profit once a gap has been left open.
Livingston locked the door and swallowed the key a couple of weeks back - Celtic could probably do with identifying another central midfielder who is capable of picking such a low-block lock and allowing Maeda, should he arrive, to burst through it.
The defensive and off-the-ball aspect of Postecoglou's forwards plays a huge part in his intense ideology, proved by the manager's response to questions about Jota's superb performance against Ferencvaros at Celtic Park when he replied: "He was great, but I look at the other side of things as well; the understanding that he needs to work hard defensively for us.
“The key with attacking players like him and the others we have brought in is that they need to invest in our football. That is, they need to work hard in certain areas and, if they do, they will get their rewards with the way we play."
Maeda understands this already, of course.
His opportunistic pressing is demonstrated in the pictures above but Maeda's intensity holds up well statistically too.
Persistence pays off with Postecoglou and Maeda would reinforce that in attack with more than three recoveries per 90 as well as a few interceptions into the bargain.
For context Kyogo, the tone-setter and virtual embodiment of the Postecoglou pressing philosophy, averages around two recoveries and just more than one interception. Notably, both of those metrics have gone down for Kyogo since he arrived in Scotland but that is likely a byproduct of playing in a more ball-dominant team than anything else.
Jota, Abada and even Kyogo may be signings that are still studying and adapting to the manager's demands, but perhaps the key thing to remember is that Maeda wouldn't be picking up his textbook in a Postecoglou classroom for the first time.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here