Oh Hyeon-gyu has revealed the role that Son Heung-min played in firing up his European ambitions.
The Spurs striker is the biggest name in Korean football after seven years in the EPL on the back of five seasons in the Bundesliga with Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen.
Although he wasn’t named in the South Korean World Cup squad Oh was in Qatar on stand-by, learning from Son and the other European based players.
Brazil brutally killed of South Korea’s hopes of going deep into the tournament but a couple of weeks working with elite players strengthened Oh’s resolve to move on from Sunwon Bluewings.
The Sun reports:
Oh scored 14 goals last season and was taken to the World Cup as a standby player for South Korea.
Meanwhile, the Celtic target reckons secret chats with fellow countryman and Tottenham star Son Heung-min can set him up for a long career at the top.
Asked about his Qatar chats with the Spurs man, he said: “I thought to myself, ‘This is really different’.
“I kept it secret in a notepad on my cellphone. It cannot be disclosed. Before going to Qatar, I was worried about whether I would be able to get along with everyone.
“I had only been selected for the national team once and I thought I would feel lonely — but as time passed it was so much fun. Attitude
“I am grateful to the senior players who were so considerate and approached me first.
“As I watched the sincere attitude of all the national team players eagerly preparing and training like real battles, I felt I was part of the team.
“I didn’t want to get in the squad due to an injury as it would have been sad for one of my team-mates. I just used the experience to make a promise that I will be involved in the next World Cup.
“When I watched it all, I noticed new things and the experience and memories will help me in the future.”
It seems that Celtic have made real progress on Thursday towards signing Oh with Ange Postecoglou looking to conclude some deals in the next few days.
Switching continent during January is a big ask but Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda both made an instant impact on Celtic 12 months ago.
Oh will be back-up to Kyogo Furuhashi which should mean a less demanding settling in period than the January 2022 intake.
