Celtic ensured that they will be in the hat for the next round of the League Cup with a relatively comfortable 3-1 win over Hibernian at Parkhead on Sunday.
The Hoops failed at the same stage last season, with a loss to Kilmarnock, but two goals from Daizen Maeda and one from Nicolas Kuhn sealed the win at the weekend.
Brendan Rodgers went with a very strong starting XI, rather than handing opportunities to other players in the squad, with Kyogo Furuhashi dropping out through injury and being replaced by Maeda through the middle.
The Japan international caught the eye with a brace in a rare outing as the centre-forward for Celtic, with his usual position out wide on the left.
Daizen Maeda's performance against Hibernian
With Idah left on the bench, having only just arrived on a permanent deal from Norwich City, Maeda was given a chance to stake a claim for a place through the middle as a striker.
His first goal came with a fantastic run and cross by Reo Hatate down the right flank. The Japanese forward did well to get across his marker at the front post and saw his prodded effort deflect into the back of the net.
Maeda's second goal came just 14 minutes later, in the 17th minute, with a brilliant run in-behind the defence and a clever, stretched, finish to poke the ball past the onrushing goalkeeper.
However, the winger-turned-striker did have a number of chances to secure a hat-trick but failed to take them, wasting one huge chance when Matt O'Riley slipped him in down the middle in the second half, but he was too slow to get his shot away.
Celtic's real hero against Hibernian
Rodgers' real hero against Hibernian was German forward Nicolas Kuhn, who was a magician on the pitch for the Scottish giants at Parkhead.
The definition of a constant threat on the right flank. Always available for the ball, always probing to make something happen, and he has the quality to back it up.
His pass for Maeda's second goal was beautiful with the perfect amount of curl and perfect weight for the Japan international to finish and make it 2-0. It really is no surprise to see that he earned a 9/10 rating from The Celtic Way's Ryan McGinlay.
Appearances
2
Goals
2
Assists
1
Key passes per game
1.0
Dribbles completed per game
2.0
As you can see in the table above, Kuhn came into the match off the back of a fantastic start to the season in the Scottish Premiership, with three goal contributions in two matches.
He carried that form over into this cup clash with his third goal in as many games, closing down Josef Bursik to, essentially, deflect a pass into the back of the net.
That goal typified the 5 foot 9 maestro's industrious performance on the wing, as he constantly pressed and probed in and out of possession to make things happen for Celtic.
Kuhn was at the heart of pretty much everything that was good about Celtic's play, with his direct dribbling, pressing, and intelligent passing, and that is why he was the real hero for Rodgers.
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ByDan Emery