Yang Hyun-Jun has forced open the door to a £2.1 million switch to Celtic after his club chief backed down following a crunch meeting.
The 21-year-old held face-to-face talks with Gangwon CEO Kim Byung-ji in a bid to clear a pathway to Parkhead. And Yang’s persistence has paid off with his boss now prepared to accept Celtic’s proposal and let him leave now after initially refusing to let him go during this transfer window.
Kim revealed: “I have met with Yang. I still believe in the skills he has. However, we have to consider the impact of the current situation on the club as well as on the player himself. This is a positive message. A contract is only possible when the details are negotiated. No one knows what will happen in the middle of the process. However, both clubs and players are reviewing it positively.”
An official from the Gangwon club confirmed Celtic’s offer is now a goer and said: “On the 5th, CEO Kim Byeong-ji met with Yang Hyun-Jun and had a candid conversation. We decided to completely review the policy of no summer transfers. The misunderstanding between the players and the club has also been resolved.
“Now they say they have come to the conclusion that we should do our best in each position while respecting each other. A full review means that we decided to positively consider Celtic’s proposal.”
Yang sought crucial discussions after his club took an initial stance to refuse him a move away during this summer’s transfer window. The Korean has set his heart on Parkhead having had a move to Major League Soccer side Minnesota United blocked last year and was unhappy at the latest state of affairs.
Yang even took the huge step of insisting he would give up his salary to Gangwon to clinch a transfer to Scotland with Kim subsequently making it clear that the stalemate and stand-off was not a good situation to be played out in public. However, the Wednesday morning summit to thrash out the situation has dramatically changed the position and opened a path for the player to get his dream move.
Celtic are looking to strengthen their squad having manager Brendan Rodgers having already secured the services of Norwegian Odin Thiago Holm and Aussie ace Marco Tilio and now Yang appears available in the current market place.
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