The European career of rising star Yang Hyun-joon (23, Celtic) has slowly begun to show a glow.
Yang Hyun-joon started as a left striker in the 23rd round of the 2024-2025 Scottish Premier League at Dens Park in Dundee, Scotland on the 15th (Korea time) and spent 71 minutes on the ground until he was replaced by Alex Valle in the 26th minute of the second half.
Yang Hyun-jun scored a goal in the 5th minute of the first half, when Celtic Luke McGowan and Dundee Oluwa Sun Adewumi exchanged one goal each in the 41st minute of the first half, and scored a leading goal in the 8th minute of the second half when the score was 1-1. Japanese striker Kyogo Furuhashi poked a low cross from the right into the door. The ball bounced high in the competition between the two teams in front of the gate, and Yang Hyun-joon, who was in front of the far post, jumped before the opponent and shook the net with a header.
Sports broadcaster "Sky Sports" highlighted his performance, saying, "YANG left his mark in a Celtic uniform!"
With this, Yang Hyun-joon scored a first-place goal in 13 games since the opening of the season. Recently, he has increased the frequency of his starts and boosted his performance, and it has finally paid off. It has been 431 days since Yang Hyun-joon scored in a Celtic uniform against Everdeen at home on Nov. 12, 2023. Yang had been silent for 54 consecutive games for his team and the national team since the match against Everdeen.
Yang Hyun-joon, who moved to Celtic from Gangwon in July 2023, was the only Korean trio playing for Celtic to remain in the team and compete for the starting lineup. Midfielder Kwon Hyuk-kyu has left on loan to St. Mirren, and striker Oh Hyun-kyu was transferred to Belgium's Hent in July last year.
While expanding his foothold, Yang was sent off 15 minutes into the game against Hearts in March last year. Yang finally got his chance. He started the game for the last three games in a row due to favorable factors such as Japanese striker Daichi Maeda's injury.
Unfortunately, Yang's goal was not the final goal. Celtic allowed their team to come from behind 2-3 with an own goal scored by Cameron Carter and Vickers from Tottenham in the 9th minute of the second half and Aaron Donnelly in the 33rd minute of the second half. Yang was pulled out to the bench with the score tied 2-2. Celtic secured one point by Joker Arne Engels, who replaced Yang in the second half, scored a dramatic equalizer in the third minute of extra time.
Yang posted a score of 7.3, the fourth highest in his team based on statistics firm SofaScore, with one shot, one goal, 95 percent pass success rate (35 successful), 100 percent long pass success rate (three successful), 50 percent ground race success rate (four successful), one dribble break, and three fouls in 71 minutes. Ace Furuhashi had a rating of 7.2 points. 안전놀이터
Celtic, which has been undefeated in four consecutive matches, has secured 60 points to secure the lead. It is 16 points behind Rangers (44 points) who are currently in second place. Unless a natural disaster occurs, Yang Hyun-joon is likely to win the league's championship following last season. Celtic, led by manager Brandon Rogers, are currently losing three consecutive games.