Oh Hyeon-gyu’s medical mystery cost Celtic a £4m windfall

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The Celtic Star

·9 settembre 2025

Oh Hyeon-gyu’s medical mystery cost Celtic a £4m windfall

Former Celtic striker Oh Hyeon-gyu has confessed he can’t understand Stuttgart’s decision to scrap a £24 million transfer over injury worries, a decision that also denied the Hoops a valuable £4 million boost…

AA Gent vs KRC Genk Hyeon-Gyu Oh (9) of Genk celebrates the 1-1 equalizer goal from teammate Yira Sor (14) of Genk during the Jupiler Pro League season 2024 – 2025 matchday 9 game in the Champions Play offs between AA Gent and KRC Genk on May 18 , 2025 in Gent, Belgium. (Photo by David Catry Isosport) Gent Belgium

The South Korean forward appeared set to swap Genk for the Bundesliga, even flying to Germany last week to finalise the transfer with the Champions League club.

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Celtic included a sell-on clause in Oh’s £3.5 million move to the Belgian side last summer, and the Scottish champions stood to collect about £4 million had the transfer gone through.

Stuttgart, though, pulled out of the agreement, pointing to worries over a potential knee problem.

South Korea-Kuwait World Cup qualifier South Korea’s Oh Hyeon-gyu R reacts after scoring the team’s third goal during the second half of a 2026 football World Cup third-round Asian qualifier against Kuwait at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul on June 10, 2025. Photo: Yonhap News

The ex-Celtic striker put aside his frustration to feature for South Korea in a 2-0 victory over the United States, later admitting he remained puzzled by the collapse of the transfer.

As reported by Daily Record, Oh said: “Since high school, I’ve never had any problems with my knee and never missed games due to injuries, not even at Celtic or Genk.”

“So I was disappointed the transfer didn’t happen because I was ready for it both physically and mentally. But as soon as I left Stuttgart and went to the United States to play for my country, I put that behind me.

“Life would be less fun if only good things happened to you. You have to persevere, despite setbacks. I’m just going to work hard and prove myself. If I get so good at some point that every team wants me, then there won’t be a problem!”

27th May 2023. Oh Hyeon-Gyu during the Scottish Premiership match at Celtic Park, Photo Neil Hanna / Sportimage

In other news, over the weekend, Celtic Supporters Association delivered a unanimous No Confidence vote in the Celtic FC Board.

A statement read: “Following on from our meeting on Friday with Michael Nicholson and other representatives of Celtic Football Club, we convened a meeting today of our member branches to give a report on the aforementioned meeting.”

Peter Lawwell, Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay applaud during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Livingston at Celtic Park on August 23, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

“The member branches were dissatisfied with the answer’s to our questions, and as a consequence have decided to place a vote of no confidence on the Board of Celtic Football Club.”

Conor Spence

Celtic in the Eighties – Out Now!…

Celtic in the Eighties by the late, great David Potter is out now on Celtic Star Books. Celtic in the Eighties is now available in the Celtic superstore and all other club shops. And don’t forget that you can still purchase your copy directly from Celticstarbooks.com for same day postage.