Yang Hyun-jun continued his excellent run of form by scoring the winner as Celtic came from behind to beat St Mirren 2-1 – but the Hoops will now have to do without the winger for the foreseeable future.
St Mirren took the lead through Agrafiotis in the first half, but Celtic responded after the break as Liam Scales levelled before Yang completed the comeback in the 68th minute.
The South Korean showed impressive composure to finish and send Martin O’Neill’s side back to Glasgow with all three points.
However, his night was cut short shortly afterwards when he was forced off with an injury.
Celtic were already preparing to lose Yang for a number of fixtures, with the winger due to join up with South Korea’s squad for the Asian Games on September 7.
That means St Mirren was likely to be the last time Celtic supporters see Yang in Hoops for a little while.
His absence could prove particularly significant, with the winger potentially missing both derby clashes against Rangers as well as Celtic’s Europa League meeting with Ferencváros if South Korea progress deep into the tournament.
O’Neill admitted after the game that Celtic will miss the 23-year-old, who has been one of the club’s standout performers in recent weeks.
“We are going to miss him. Really disappointed. He’s in really fine form at the moment,” O’Neill said to the Daily Record.
“I hope they get beaten quickly! No, I don’t. I don’t. Please, scrub that!
“He’ll read this and he’ll be really disappointed.
“But, no, because if they do, if they don’t win the tournament, then he has to do national service. So I hope they do win it. But, yeah, he’s signed off. Brilliant goal.
“He’s in great form and he’ll work for you going backwards. He doesn’t mind doing that hard graft.”
Yang’s form means his departure comes at an awkward time for Celtic, with O’Neill losing a player who has become increasingly important to his side.
The winger has now signed off with another goal, but Celtic face a difficult few weeks without him.
It will be interesting to see who starts on the left on Wednesday, as the Hoops make the trip to Perth.
Keep Reading
One Response
As long as his replacement is NOT Tounekti…What an imposter this guy is.