Cho Gue-Sung is better off waiting until the summer to join Celtic after a potential £2.6 million move to the Scottish Premiership champions fell through in January, South Korea team-mate Park Joo-ho tells Yonhap News.
A mid-season switch, Park adds, would have denied Cho the opportunity to undergo an extensive pre-season in Glasgow, the Jeonbuk Motors striker instead finding himself chucked in at the deep end in the midst of a Premiership title race.
Then again, the likes of Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda wasted little time marking their mark on Scottish soil. Alistair Johnston, meanwhile, has stepped in immediately at right-back following Josip Juranovic’s £7.5 million switch to Union Berlin.
Every player is different, of course. But Ange Postecoglou has an excellent record when it comes to signing players in January and integrating them into his Celtic side.
Nonetheless, Cho opted to wait until the summer instead; a potential £2.6 million move to Parkhead collapsing after weeks of negotiations during the January window. A decision Park Joo-ho broadly agrees with.
Celtic could still sign Cho Gue-Sung
“It’s better to go in the summer,” says Park, capped 40 times by his country. “It’s not easy to adapt right away without having a chance to train with your team-mates.
“You need a (strong) mentality to endure when you are having a hard time, and to maintain it when you are doing well. Europe is a lonely place. You have to compete while overcoming the quiet times.”
A move to Celtic, should Postecoglou renew his interest in the coming months, would represent Cho’s first step outside of South Korean football. The physical centre-forward was the K-League’s Golden Boot winner in 2022, and also hit the target twice against Ghana at the Qatar World Cup.
According to the Scottish Sun, Celtic were ‘confident’ of signing Cho in January; submitting a bid just shy of £3 million. The departure of Giorgios Giakoumakis to Atlanta United could potentially open the door for Cho’s belated arrival, even after Celtic snapped up another South Korea international in the shape of Oh Hyeon-Gyu.
“I have been living in Europe for about seven or eight years now. Coming to Europe means that I have become a better player,” says Hwang Hee-Chan; now at Wolves following a stint at Red Bull Salzburg.
“No matter which teams (the K-League’s best players) go to, they will show enough ability. The more players playing in Europe, the stronger the competitiveness. I hope that many players go to Europe after doing well in the K-League in the future.”
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