Despite admitting he will have to make contingency plans regarding winger Yang, the boss of South Korea’s under-23s has included the wide-man in his squad for the upcoming Olympics qualifiers (RecordSport).
Hwang Sun-hong recently announced his team. He said: [RecordSport] “The Olympic qualifying tournament will be a difficult one. We’ll have to be prepared for that. If we don’t get our European-based players, we will have to come up with a Plan B.”
Such a move comes as a surprise, and it throws a spanner into Celtic’s works. Indeed, the club has no right to let the winger go and play for his nation next month because the international window is not in FIFA’s official schedule.
Yang, though, has been named in a 23-man South Korean squad that will face the United Arab Emirates, China, and Japan in their hopes of qualifying for the Summer Olympics in Paris.
Inevitably, the upcoming matches clash with a few Celtic ones. Yang could miss St. Mirren at home on the 13th of April, Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup semi-finals a week later, and some post-split games if he jets off.
Celtic, though, has no obligation to let him go and must make the key decision of whether to sanction his brief absence or ensure Yang stays in Glasgow for what is a crucial run-in.
