Following a recent spell of good form, Yang Hyun-jun is being singled out for a call-up to the South Korea national team this month…
It comes after a renaissance in domestic football with Celtic, as well as showcasing his abilities to a wider audience in the Champions League knockouts against Bayern Munich too.
Yang showing great development under Brendan Rodgers
The South Korean has been somewhat of a peripheral figure at Celtic Park since he arrived in the summer transfer window of 2023 from Gangwon FC in his homeland. The athletic and nimble winger has struggled at times in the past to get to grips with life in Scotland and playing for a big club in Celtic. However, his recent performances have all suggested that the attacker just needed a settling in period and has the potential for development under Brendan Rodgers.
Several of Yang’s teammates who joined in that aforementioned transfer window have been moved on, with Rodgers not really happy with that particular influx as a whole. Yang was kept around though, as the Irishman clearly seen something in the youngster to suggest he could become a helpful tool for this Hoops side in the time since.
Yang can handle the pressure of playing for Celtic
His recent performances have certainly proven he has talent, it’s about whether he can do it on a consistent basis and handle that pressure.
This recent upturn in fortunes has saw a clamour from back home in the media to give Yang an international call-up, with World Cup qualifiers looming large for the Korean Republic. Korea JoongAng Daily are now insisting that Yang should be called up to the national team for this next round of crucial matches, in the hope of qualifying for the World Cup in 2026.
The report reads as follows:
“Yang can execute a classic winger role for the national team on both flanks, although sealing a spot in the best XI entails competition against fellow Europe-based midfielders such as Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur and Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“But Hong also has the option to call up Bae Jun-ho of Stoke City in lieu of Hwang, as the Stoke midfielder picked up two assists in the October break and one goal in November last year.
“And there is another national team regular, Lee Kang-in of Paris Saint-Germain, who has the versatility to play as an attacking midfielder or winger in Hong’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
“A plethora of already-proven winger picks for Korea thus gives Hong a choice of utilizing Yang as a substitute, which would still mean further growing presence for the Celtic winger.”
Paul Gillespie
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