Jurgen Klinsmann reckons Oh Hyeon-gyu is a very special player at a massive club.
And Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou says a constant drive for improvement will see this young striker fulfil his burgeoning potential. Klinsmann was mobbed by autograph hunters on his way into Rugby Park after he went to Ayrshire to get a close-up view of Oh. The hitman was unable to take one of the second-half opportunities which came his way after appearing in the second half as a replacement for Kyogo Furuhashi.
But, having had him in the squad for the last national-team gathering, Klinsmann didn’t need Oh to hit the net to Ayrshire to be convinced of his qualities. The former Spurs hitman is already convinced that Postecoglou’s January signing from Suwon Bluewings is destined for the top. And Klinsmann also believes the 22-year-old is in the perfect environment to take his career and play to the next level.
He said: “He’s a very special talent. I had him with me in the last two matches there when we played Colombia and Uruguay two weeks ago and he left a very, very positive impression.
“I was very, very impressed. He’s a good lad and a huge talent I think for Celtic and for us in the Korean national team. When you have the opportunity to play for a massive club like Celtic, it’s not easy for young players, obviously he’s fighting for minutes.
“But it’s a big learning curve and I can only recommend young players to come to Europe and give it a try, give it their best and see where it goes. He is part of the future. That’s why I am here. Obviously, I understand he is not always playing from the beginning, but we count upon him. He is learning a lot. He is learning every day in training, he is learning every minute that he is on the field, so we are very pleased with him.
“I came to Europe for a 10-day trip to see Korean players all over the place. I was at Spurs yesterday [Saturday] to see Sonny and now I get the chance to see a very young striker playing for Celtic. Hopefully he gets some minutes from Ange.”
Postecoglou dished out 45 to the kid at Rugby Park and the striker, although not able to hit the net, was involved in plenty.
He came close to scoring and was also booked for a high-boot challenge. Postecoglou is pleased with the development and made it crystal clear the decision to pitch him into the action was not about Klinsmann’s presence.
He said: “Not because he was here, which is great. We just want to get him game time because we think he will be good for us. It’s a tricky period with no midweek games when there would normally be rotation. In every game he’s made an impact.
“It was difficult as the second half was more of a battle, which he’s always up for. He got in a great position when he missed his chance. He wants to improve all the time. He’s hungry to be a top footballer and he will get more chances.”
Although Oh didn’t score, his colleagues had already created enough mayhem to ensure the game was won before he got onto the field.
Kyogo bagged an opener and Daizen Maeda scored a second as the champions-elect ran amok in Ayrshire. Matt O’Riley added two more either side of a missed Kyogo penalty as Postecoglou’s troops took another giant step towards the title. O’Riley was delighted with his goals as his side made light work of the artificial pitch and short work of their hosts.
He said: “It was good. Like I said before the game, if we tried to play the football we know how to play on this surface, it wouldn’t be a problem. And it showed. The message early doors was one goal kind of kills their game plan because they want to be tight and compact. We got two early and that changed everything for us.
“Early doors, it was basically three against two in midfield plus Greg [Taylor] and Ally [Johnston] coming inside, so we had a massive overload.
“We kind of knew that would be the case before the game and we exploited it nicely. It’s been a strange season in the regard of scoring. I’ve contributed quite a lot in terms of providing goals, but, of course, I’d like to score more and I managed that here.”
Postecoglou needed contributions from other stars who have not regular starts with Sead Haksabanovic also stepping into the side and impressing.
The absence of Portuguese winger Jota opened a door for the Montenegrin and he grasped the chance with aplomb. Haksabanovic was delighted to play his part in the win which took his side to within just seven points of the flag.
The former Rubin Kazan ace admitted it was not easy going on the surface, but said: “It was always nice to get minutes and to start.
“It was a while ago I started and, on this pitch, it’s a bit harder. You feel it in your legs. I was tired in the end, but it’s nice, of course. Since I came, I’ve known we have a big squad and we have top quality players. When you get your chance you need to take it.”
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