Celtic ended up signing Oh Hyeon-gyu in January as the replacement for Giorgos Giakoumakis, who has left in order to join Atlanta United in the MLS. The South Korean striker has impressed since arriving in Glasgow as well and recently got his first goal for the Hoops, in the Scottish Cup game vs St Mirren, showing his instincts in the box.
For weeks before Oh’s arrival though, Celtic had been linked with another South Korean striker, but that did not transpire. Cho Gue-sung had impressed immensely at the recent World Cup, and had been in top form for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors as well.
Thus, it was not hard to understand why Celtic might be interested in bringing Cho in. And rumours suggested that they launched a significant transfer bid for him in January as well. Ultimately though, the 25-year-old decided to stay put at Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors for the time being.
That decision surprised a lot of people. Other than Celtic, he was also being linked with a possible switch to the MLS or the Bundesliga. But as reported by Chosun (via 67 Hail Hail), Cho said about the matter:
"“I thought I would transfer when the offer came because I did well at the World Cup in Qatar. I had doubts while I was taking a break from exercising.“I was thinking about when my body would come back if I went to Europe now. In particular, I heard a lot of advice from seniors and coaches around me.“I gained a lot more than I thought in the last World Cup. My goal was to become a professional player, play games, and then become a member of the national team. Participating in the World Cup was also a dream. In the end, my dream came true, now I am ready for the next step.“Everyone has a dream. Everyone has a different dream. However, it is not the dream to make a lot of money as a soccer player, the most important thing right now is to prepare well for the next step.“My final goal is the Premier League. Of course, to advance to the Premier League, which is the final goal, I have to go through stages.”"
Cho explains why he rejected chance to join Celtic in January
It would make sense for Cho to wait for the summer to make a move to Europe. On one hand, he would not be in peak fitness if he arrived in January, having not played competitive football for a while.
On the other hand, in the summer, he would get the time to undergo pre-season, and get accustomed to his new surroundings and teammates.
Thus, a move to Celtic Park might not be completely off the table just yet. At the same time though, if Oh does well, the club might no longer need to bring in Cho to strengthen their ranks up front.