Celtic trio's Champions League heroics don't blow Japan boss away as he sets contenders criteria for Kyogo Maeda and Hatate

Hajime Moriyasu is less than enthusiastic after Hoops battered Slovan Bratislava

Japan boss Hajime Moriyasu has suggested the performances by Celtic's Samurai Blue trio in the Champions League won't count for anything until they do it against the big guns.

Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi were at the heart of things as Brendan Rodgers' side dismantled Slovan Bratislava in the opening game of the tournament, with Kyogo and Maeda both on target,

But Moriyasu seems to be very reluctant to call on them with Kyogo continually being snubbed for the squad and Hatate dragged across the globe for Japan's World Cup qualifiers against China and Bahrain, yet wasn't included in either matchday squad. And while Moriyasu acknowledged their performances last week, he's suggested it won't really make a difference until they do the business against a higher calibre of opponent. He said: "We had 12 players - our highest-ever number - playing in the Champions League and I feel that Japan's level has improved even further.

"I'm looking forward to seeing how Japanese players will fight to win the Champions League in the future. The level of opposition our players were up against last week isn't everything, but it's definitely something we look at as a criterion.

"So I only want to look at how well Japanese players can perform against teams that aim to win the Champions League. And we also look at how well Japanese national team candidates can perform in regular league matches against higher-ranked teams and more powerful teams in the world."

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