Celtic ready to move ASAP to sign 45-cap World Cup star

Now that Martin O’Neill is locked in as Celtic‘s manager for the next 12 months, the experienced head coach can start to bring in his own signings in the summer transfer window.

The Northern Irish boss should be aiming to add more attacking quality to the group after it took until the final day for the Hoops to secure the Scottish Premiership title last season.

One of the players who could be in danger of being replaced with a better option at the top end of the pitch is South Korean forward Hyun-jun Yang.

The 24-year-old star, who is currently at the World Cup, ended the 2025/26 campaign with nine goals and one assist in 38 appearances in the Premiership and the Europa League combined.

He did not register a single assist in the top-flight until the 3-2 win over Motherwell in May, and did not deliver consistently as an offensive force for the Scottish giants.

Celtic to ramp up move to sign World Cup forward

Yang is not an awful player by any means, given that he sitll produced double figures for goals contributions in all competitions, but the Hoops should be looking for more consistency from their attacking starters.

Now, the Premiership champions are reportedly looking at a deal for a star who would arrive at Parkhead as an even better option than the South Korea international on the right flank.

According to Football Insider, Celtic are preparing to step up their efforts to sign Motherwell forward Elijah Just in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that the Hoops are ready to accelerate their interest in the 45-cap New Zealand international to make a move as soon as possible, after his impressive performances at the World Cup for his country.

It adds that the left-footed star is high up on O’Neill’s list of summer targets, because he is a player whom they believe has the quality to improve their side.

Football Insider reveals, though, that Rangers are also interested in the World Cup star and that other teams are also expected to join the race for the attacker, who was given a £3m price tag earlier this month.

How Elijah Just would be better than Hyun-jun Yang for Celtic

The Hoops must push to win the race for the Motherwell star’s signature in the coming weeks because he would improve O’Neill’s options at the top end of the pitch ahead of next season.

As aforementioned, Yang did not deliver consistently, particularly as a creative threat down the right side, and Celtic should be looking for more quality in that position on the right wing.

Just’s form for Motherwell in the Premiership, for a team who finished three places below Celtic in the division, suggests that he would offer way more to the team at the top end of the pitch.

They both delivered goals at a similar rate in comparison to their xG numbers, but the Motherwell star was far more creative for his side on the wing, delivering seven times as many assists.

Just has proven that he can score and create goals on a regular basis in the Premiership with his return of 14 goal contributions in the division, more than Yang has managed in any of his three seasons in Scotland so far.

On top of his impressive form in the Scottish top-flight, the 26-year-old star also scored two goals for New Zealand against Iran in the World Cup earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Yang has yet to start a game for South Korea at the World Cup, let alone register a goal or an assist, which shows that the Motherwell star has been more effective on the world’s biggest stage.

Therefore, Celtic could improve their squad by signing Just to replace Yang as a starter on the right wing for O’Neill, because he has the attacking quality to win more matches for the team with his goals and assists in the Premiership.

That does not mean that there is not a place in the squad for Yang moving forward, though, because he can be a valuable rotation option and occasional starter, given that he has shown that he can provide quality in flashes.