Yang Hyun-jun's Breakout Performance for Celtic

Yang Hyun-jun walked off in Paisley like a man leaving a gift on the table and closing the door behind him.

At The Marbill Coaches Stadium on 5 September, with the game stretched and tense, the 24-year-old cut in from the left and buried his chance in the 68th minute to make it 2-1 to Celtic against St Mirren. One clean strike, one decisive moment, one more reminder of just how far he has come.

It wasn’t just the finish. It was the performance.

Yang’s breakout under O’Neill

Yang has started this season like a player who suddenly understands his own power. Against the Paisley side he was relentless on that left flank, driving at defenders, demanding the ball, linking superbly with Camilo Duran – whose terrific assist set up the winner – and carrying a constant threat.

He looks at home out there now. Comfortable, confident, ruthless. On the opposite side, Haissem Hassan offers similar energy and direct running, even if the final product from the Egyptian international is still to properly click. That will come; the raw materials are there. For Yang, though, the end product has already arrived.

His goal in Paisley was his second in as many games, backing up his strike against Aberdeen at Celtic Park the previous Wednesday night. This isn’t a flash in the pan. It feels like the start of something.

Under Martin O’Neill’s guidance, Yang has gone from fringe option to key asset. A year ago, few would have blinked if his name had been missing from the team sheet. Now his absence feels like a problem Celtic will actually have to solve.

From £3m nearly-man to £25m talk

It is remarkable to think that around this time last year Yang was on the verge of being sold to Birmingham City for just £3 million. That move collapsed amid the wider failings of Celtic’s summer 2025 transfer window, a messy episode the support knows only too well.

That failed transfer has turned into a sliding-doors moment.

Instead of disappearing into the English Championship, Yang has fought his way into the heart of O’Neill’s plans. He’s sharpened his decision-making, toughened his game, and added goals to his natural trickery on the wing. It’s hard to recall many recent Celtic players who have improved so dramatically in such a short period.

Now, when people talk about outgoings, the figures attached to his name sound very different. If this trajectory continues through the season, it’s not wild to imagine clubs circling with offers north of £25 million next summer. That’s the scale of the transformation.

A parting blow for Celtic’s schedule

And that’s what makes his next move so awkward for Celtic.

Yang’s winner in Paisley doubles as a parting shot before he joins up with the South Korea squad for the Asian Games. For him, it’s a proud call-up. For Celtic, it’s a headache.

He will miss Wednesday night’s trip to Perth to face St Johnstone. He’ll also sit out the Glasgow Derby double header against Rangers and the Europa League opener at home to Hungarian runners-up Ferencvaros. For a side that has just watched him become one of its most dangerous attacking outlets, that’s a serious blow.

These are the fixtures where you want your in-form wide man available, the player who can turn tight games with a moment of invention or a clinical finish. The same qualities that undid St Mirren will be badly missed in the weeks ahead.

O’Neill knows it. The supporters know it. You can feel it in the way his absence is already being discussed – not as a minor inconvenience, but as a major disruption to a system that now leans heavily on his creativity and cutting edge.

Enjoying the player he’s become

The contrast with last season is stark. Twelve months ago, talk of Yang leaving would barely have raised an eyebrow. Now the idea of losing him even temporarily feels like a significant dent in Celtic’s attacking armoury.

His rise under the veteran Irishman has been one of the most striking individual stories at the club in recent years. From almost being quietly moved on, to celebrating with Liam Scales in front of the away support after another match-winning contribution in Paisley, Yang has rewritten his Celtic story in real time.

The next chapter will be written on another continent, in South Korea colours. When he returns, the schedule will be no kinder, the expectations no lower, and the spotlight that bit brighter.

For now, though, Celtic are left with the memory of that 68th-minute strike and the nagging thought that their most improved player might also be their most irreplaceable.

Enjoy him while he’s still here. The rest of Europe is starting to notice.