Celtic face Japan squad nightmare but here's why there is still hope

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Confident Celtic supporters are convinced they are building a side capable of challenging Rangers this season. Boss Ange Postecoglou has captured hearts and minds in Glasgow's east end and their title tilt comes after a season where they finished a record 25 points behind their rivals.

The botched pursuit of 10 In A Row is consigned to history and there's proof this team can win silverware after their Premier Sports Cup Final triumph.But a selection headache is looming ahead of a vital run of fixtures.An international fixture double-header, for countries outwith Europe, is set to wreak havoc with a host of squad during a vital part of the season.

With Tom Rogic already picked by Australia, Celtic will be hoping get a rub of the green with their four Japanese stars in Kyogo, Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi. Get all the latest Celtic news sent straight to your Inbox every day by signing up to our newsletter.We cover every morsel of information regarding your favourite club in the form of articles, videos and podcasts.The newsletter will arrive every day at 12pm, giving you a round up of the best stories we've covered that in the last 24 hours.To sign up, simply enter your email address into the link here.And if you aren't already, make sure you join the conversation over on our Celtic Facebook group and Record Sport Instagram.Japan are set to clash with China on January 27 before they take on Saudi Arabia on February 1 with both fixtures at home.And any player who gets the nod will miss games against Hearts, Dundee United and Rangers and face a sizeable journey back to Scotland ahead of a clash with Motherwell.Hajime Moriyasu is expected to name his strongest squad with qualifying for Qatar still very much