Celtic have had a great time in the January transfer window till now, having already completed the signings of Yuki Kobayashi, Alistair Johnston and Tomoki Iwata. But now, it looks like the Hoops have been handed their first blow of the month, as one of their priority targets appears to have rejected the chance to make the move to Parkhead.
Celtic will most likely need to strengthen up top this month, due to the fact that their finishing has left a lot to be desired this season and also because Giorgos Giakoumakis seems to be closing in on a Parkhead exit.
It had appeared that Celtic were eyeing Cho Gue-sung of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors as the ideal replacement for the Greek international and had even put in an offer for him. As tweeted out by Fabrizio Romano, the Hoops had made a €3 million bid with 50% on a future transfer up to €6 million. But now, it looks like the South Korean centre-forward is set to stay on at his current club.
A report from Sports Donga goes on to read:
"‘World Cup hero’ Cho Kyu-seong (25, Jeonbuk Hyundai), who has been seeking to advance to Europe, has decided to stay.A K-League source said on the 14th, “Cho Kyu-sung has decided to stay in Jeonbuk. I know he made up his mind ahead of the weekend. For now, it seems that there will be no transfers this winter unless there are decisive variables such as big European leagues and large proposals from big clubs.”"
Celtic handed blow as priority target decides to stay
It is safe to say that this is not good news for Celtic, who seemed to have been chasing the signature of the South Korean striker for a while. But perhaps, it makes sense for him to stay and see what kind of options open up in the summer.
On the other hand, Celtic will need to quickly turn their attention elsewhere as the signing of a striker this month is more of a necessity than a luxury for the club, especially if Giakoumakis departs.
Now, it will be interesting to see who they end up targeting next. The club have been linked with a few other strikers recently, including Polish wonderkid, Szymon Wlodarczyk, who has been labelled as the ‘young Lewandowski’.