Key Celtic Player Could Return After Barely Being Seen This Season — And Martin O’Neill Must Start Him

There is one Celtic player whose return could make a bigger difference than many supporters realise. He is not a new signing, nor someone who needs time to adapt to Scottish football. He is someone who has already shown us what he can bring to this team.

I am talking about Yang Hyun-jun.

Yang has barely featured this season, but his absence has been noticeable. His last appearance came against St Mirren on 5 September, when he scored the winner in Paisley. Since then, a hamstring injury picked up while representing South Korea at the Asian Games has kept him out.

The encouraging news is that Martin O’Neill confirmed on 27 October that Yang was progressing well and expected to return to training the following week. With Celtic struggling for consistency in attack, his comeback cannot come soon enough.

What makes Yang so important is that he offers something we have not always seen enough of this season: directness.

He wants to take defenders on, attack space and make things happen. He is not afraid to drive towards goal, and his contributions before the injury showed that he can produce decisive moments rather than simply keep possession moving.

In seven appearances under O’Neill this season, Yang has recorded three goal contributions. That is a promising return for a player who has not had a sustained run in the team.

We have seen how frustrating Celtic can be when our attacking play becomes predictable. Too often, we move the ball around without enough urgency, allowing opposition defences to get organised. Yang gives us another way to hurt teams.

His pace can stretch a back line, his willingness to run at defenders creates space for others, and his defensive work gives us another option when pressing without the ball.

The question is not whether Yang deserves another opportunity. It is whether O’Neill can afford to leave him out once he is fit.

Of course, we need to be sensible. After a hamstring injury, throwing him straight into the starting eleven would be a risk. We have already seen how costly it can be when players return before they are ready, so Yang must regain his match fitness before we expect him to deliver consistently.

But once he is ready, I want to see him starting regularly rather than being treated as just another squad option.

Celtic need energy, pace and players who are prepared to take responsibility in the final third. Yang has already shown he can provide those qualities, and his return could give our attack the spark it has been missing.

He will not magically solve every problem, but having another natural winger available would give O’Neill more flexibility and make Celtic less predictable.

Yang is not a new signing, but getting him back could feel like one.

If he returns fit and firing, O’Neill should give him a genuine opportunity to make that starting spot his own. Celtic have missed his directness, and now we need to see what he can do over a sustained run in the team.