Brendan Rodgers insists Yang Hyun-Jun is going nowhere amid Celtic’s current lack of wide options and it highlights a bigger problem…
Como 24/07/2025 – / Ajax-Celtic / foto Matteo Gribaudi/Image nella foto: esultanza gol Yang Hyun-Jun
The 23 year-old has played a bit part role for the Scottish champions since arriving at the club from K-League side Gangwon FC two years ago.
Having recently been linked with a move to English Championship outfit Norwich City, it appeared Yang’s future might lie elsewhere but Rodgers has outlined the South Korean is currently not for sale.
Heading into next Sunday’s Scottish Premiership opener against St Mirren, the Celtic boss only has three wingers available for selection – Yang, Daizen Maeda and James Forrest – and has admitted that the Hoops desperately need reinforcements in the forward line.
COMO , 24-07-2025 , Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia , season 2025 / 2026 , Como Cup football , match between Ajax and Celtic , Brendan Rodgers Head coach of Celtic and John Heitinga Head Coach of Ajax. Ajax v Celtic friendly. Photo IMAGO
Speaking in Como Brendan Rodgers said: “It’s always a challenge, I think, at a club like Celtic, whenever players have maybe been for a couple of seasons and they’re not quite established. Because then they want to go and play more. But certainly at this stage, where we’re at within the squad, it’s not something I can even entertain.”
Rodgers added via Glasgow Times: “You see he’s starting the games. And I see him as an important player for us in our squad. And once we can get the quality around him, then he’ll be a good player for us. It’s hard to say. At this moment in time, he’s a starting winger for us. So we’re not in a position to be moving him on. At this moment in time, it’s not even in our thinking really.”
Peter Lawwell, Chairman of Celtic, Dermot Desmond, Non-Executive Director of Celtic, and Michael Nicholson, CEO of Celtic, are seen in attendance prior to the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and theRangers at Celtic Park on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Now, the bigger problem. Can Michael Nicholson and the Celtic board class themselves as serious operators?
They had known Nicolas Kuhn was leaving the club for many months and despite being two weeks on since his departure, they STILL have not signed his replacement ultimately leaving the manager short heading into a tough set of opening domestic fixtures and a two-legged Champions League qualifier. A serious club? Ha!
Now, Celtic in time may sign a winger. Or two. But Rodgers has constantly reinforced the message of wanting players to be in the door early [and quite rightly too]so they have time to bed in before the serious stuff starts.
Because that’s what serious clubs do. But, it’s getting all too late again.
Hyunjun Yang of Celtic celebrates their goal to make it 1-1 Ajax v Celtic, Como Cup Pre Season Football, Football, Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, Como, Italy – 24 Jul 2025Como Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia Italy. Photo Shutterstock/ IMAGO
Rodgers’ comments about ‘ambition’ following Celtic’s comprehensive 5-1 defeat to Ajax on Wednesday evening is more than concerning. This was a deliberate message to the people above. Sadly, we have been in this movie before and we know how it ends.
There should be repercussions for Celtic’s hierarchy shrugging their shoulders at the thought of pushing an elite manager like Rodgers out the door. But hey ho, the club has a net profit of around £20 million so far in this window… I’m sure readers will be delighted to know we’re a supposed well run club.
Conor Spence in Como
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The only way to get this board spending is for Rodgers to have a trophy less season and don’t qualify for the champions league then leave next season Drastic but that’s what is needed.
The board are forcing Brendan out the door and forcing open the door for our loss of the league title , the fans keep thos club solvent and only the fans can force them to listen .
Celtic NEVER listen to their supporters, are you on the helium?
Scare monger comments Rodgers sees what is asked for sqaud players we need players how will be challenging for first pick and good enough to stay there we sold a player khun who had 7 months of been a top player rest of the time his form wasn’t hot his European games got Celtic the money would you expect that amount in first few months or his last few months the prices will drop when clubs relise the are going to be left with an unhappy player who’s price will only fall on their wage bill wages is another important thing you by a player £15,000,000 or more the wage will exceed our wages structure and cause a split in dressing room McGregor will be up there but his wages will drop next contract and im sure he has done well most Celtic top earners will be retire as millionaire’s
Yes its getting near the end of window but most players move then we all know we need two front men a winger and a centre forward idah cost £9,000,000 would you pay that for him we have spent a lot on players that didn’t make a Celtic media only write about the sales idah has all the tools he has to concentrate on his touch maybe his mentality in playing in front of big supporters that demand win some players cant handle that some players love it you dont know till they put on the shirt and play
As long as a majority of fans keep buying season tickets and merchandise, that Board of misers will keep laughing up their sleeves and banking the profits. They are so arrogant in their treatment of the manager and the fanbase it beggars belief. Smug, self-serving shower of money grabbers. The first one who needs to go is Dermot Desmond. He’s been milking Celtic for far too long, as has that Lawwell dynasty. Out with the lot of them! As for Nicholson, he’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot, a man not fit for the job he’s managed to wangle his way into.
I would question why no one at agm’s raises these points (very succinctly so they have no room to waffle a response) because other than being in front of them or ‘Calm Doon’ telling us to be calm, I don’t know what it will take for this board to understand commercial workings. Say Brendan leaves, a new manager will want players. And he’ll want paid. That’s more money anyway so why not just back the successful manager we have or is it because some on the board don’t like him…..if we get dumped out of Europe and replacements are sub par, the noise in the stands will have the board with no-one to blame but themselves
Is it just a coincidence that Lawwell’s back and were back to square one, He hates Brendan and would be delighted if he left so that he could be replaced with another ” puppet “, one that lie-badly could control. He cost us 10 in a row and should never have been allowed back to Celtic, Dermott knew that but still brought him back, his way of telling the Celtic fans, “”My kfn club peasants, i’ll do what i want”.
Elite manager wtf , have a word with yourself the guys nowhere near elite ffs
He’s getting an easy ride as his fawning social media fans call out the board and ignore his shortcomings in the transfer market. He got bundles last Summer and spunked it on Engels , Trusty and Norwich bench warmer Idah. Like the man says “Elite ma baws”
I agree with Kelly & Andrha. Brendan Rodgers is not even remotely close to being an elite manager, as his disastrous stint at Leicester amply demonstrates. And if he had anything at all to do with the signings of Idah, Engels and Trusty, then he should have been sacked. His style of play and tactics are so completely boring and predictable that every team in the SPL last year knew exactly how to set up stall against us. He had no plan B!
No, Brendan is no elite manager. He inherited most of the good players at Celtic, all of whom were brought in by Ange Postecoglu, a manager far more deserving of the “elite” tag. Brendan is a mouthpiece for the Board. He sends them little subliminal messages through the media begging for players but he isn’t man enough to kick the Boardroom door open and demand them. Can you imagine Ange Postecoglu putting up with what we’re witnessing now? He would have made his thoughts perfectly clear. Ange picked the players he wanted, he didn’t leave it to the hapless Nicholson, whose just a puppet of Desmond & Lawwell. The guy they brought in from the rugby scene before Nicholson was a seriously good appointment, but he left quickly when he realised the kind of bean counters he was working with, a Board with only one ambition to line the pockets of shareholders. So yes, Brendan Rodgers is a major part of the problem. When a manager leaves recruitment to financial suits then he’s no manager, he’s just the puppet of his paymasters.