Celtic manager to decide if Kwon extends his stay at St Mirren

Having arrived on the scene from his homeland last summer in the K-League 2 with Busan IPark, the tall and athletic midfielder looked decent against English side, Wolverhampton Wanderers, in a friendly which was held in Dublin at the Aviva Stadium. However, a short while later he played in James Forrest’s testimonial match against Athletic Club Bilbao and was frankly all over the place. It might have been just nerves but that was that as far as his season in the Hoops was concerned.

It also prompted many to question whether or not it was a step too far, too soon for the player, having played second tier football in South Korea before joining the Scottish Premiership Champions. Speculation grew even further when he was not even making matchday squads under Brendan Rodgers and were convinced maybe an intermediary step in his career in the form of a loan deal somewhere, may be best for his personal development.

That arrived in the form of St Mirren, who wanted that type of profile in the centre of midfield, as Keanu Baccus had been called up to play in the AFC Asian Cup squad with Australia. So Stephen Robinson reached out to countryman Brendan Rodgers, who was happy to recommend Kwon Hyeok-kyu to his comrade for a short-term solution to his problems.

That seems to have worked wonders for both the Saints and Kwon, as the player looks to have pushed on in a less highly-pressurised environment away from Celtic Park. It’s the same kind of pathway that Kristoffer Ajer and Ryan Christie found all the way to the Celtic first team a few years ago now. Both men weren’t quite at the required level to play for the Hoops regularly but with a stint away on loan deals, they came back and forced their way into the manager’s plans.

With both now plying their trade down in the English Premier League and thriving, these temporoary moves away from Parkhead can prove invaluable for the player and the club. With Kwon’s obvious physical attributes making him an interesting prospect, it begs the question: is he ready to come back to Paradise this summer and join the squad for our assault next season at home and abroad?

Stephen Robinson has previously indicated his desire to retain the services of Kwon for another season and that will be something that Celtic will consider this summer. It will be intriguing to see what’s next for Kwon and whether he’s going to have a future at Celtic either next season or the year beyond.