Celtic are in the midst of defending their Scottish Premiership crown under Brendan Rodgers and one of his reported January targets has admitted he is aware of speculation linking him with a move to Parkhead.
Celtic latest transfer news…
Building up ahead of steam, the Hoops have made an excellent start to proceedings in the Scottish Premiership, taking 25 points from an available 27 so far, placing them seven points clear of rivals Rangers at the top of the league standings. Nevertheless, there is a desire among some supporters and Celtic boss Rodgers himself to seek further reinforcements to his squad as he aims to make the Scottish champions competitive on both domestic and European fronts.
Speaking in an interview cited via Sky Sports in late September, the boss indicated that Celtic's transfer business during the summer didn't satisfy him to the point of ruling out further activity in January. Rodgers said: "No. No [happiness with summer transfer activity]; I think if you ask any manager they will always be wanting more, of course."
He then added: "But we work with the players that are here. I'm not saying that in any disrespectful way; I think every manager will tell you they maybe wished they could have done one or two more signings."
One Celtic transfer update from Football Insider has recently revealed that bringing in a goalkeeper is high on the agenda at Parkhead as the Hoops look to bring in competition to compete with veteran stopper Joe Hart between the sticks. Real Madrid ace Andriy Lunin has been mentioned as a potential Celtic goalkeeper option; however, the same outlet claim that the Ukraine international would prefer to move to the Premier League if he were to leave Santiago Bernabeu.
Reports earlier in the month suggest that Rodgers is also keen on adding another midfielder to his ranks. Gwangju FC star Jeong Ho-Yeon is also believed to be a transfer target for Celtic and is believed to be open to a move to Europe after winning Korean military exemption due to collecting a gold medal in the Asian Games.
Celtic's signings from Asia since 2021
Previous Club
Kyogo Furuhashi
Vissel Kobe
Yang Hyun-jun
Gangwon FC
Daizen Maeda
Yokohama F. Marinos
Kwon Hyeok-kyu
Busan IPark
Yosuke Ideguchi
Gamba Osaka
Yuki Kobayashi
Vissel Kobe
Oh Hyeon-gyu
Suwon Bluewings
Tomoki Iwata
Yokohama F. Marinos
Reo Hatate
Kawasaki Frontale
Celtic transfer update – Jeong Ho-Yeon
Now, an update on Jeong's future has emerged courtesy of the player himself, who has confirmed in an interview with Sports G cited by Football Scotland that he has heard speculation mentioning him in connection with a move to Celtic. He told the outlet:
"I know that such stories are coming out around me. In fact, there has never been a specific or direct contact so far. I heard the same story from my team and agent. I just want to be faithful to my team in every moment."
Plying his trade in K League 1, the versatile midfielder can play in holding or central roles and has gone on to make 29 appearances over the course of 2023 for Gwangju FC, registering two goals and three assists (Jeong Ho-Yeon stats – Transfermarkt).
Celtic have found some brilliant success stories from exploring the globe for talent in recent years, and it remains to be seen whether Jeong will be the next in line to make a name for himself at Parkhead if a move to Glasgow does materialise for the 23-year-old.
