Yang Hyun-jun (Korean: 양현준; born 25 May 2002) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a winger (or right wing-back if necessary) for Scottish Premiership club Celtic and the South Korea national team.

Club career

Gangwon FC

Yang joined Gangwon FC just after graduating from high school in 2021.[2] He was evaluated as the best K League talent by winning four Young Player of the Month awards and the Young Player of the Year award in his second professional season.[3] He attracted Koreans with his dribbling skills during the season, especially in the K League All-Star Game against Tottenham Hotspur.[4]

Celtic

On 15 July 2023, Gangwon FC announced that Yang would be transferring to Scottish Premiership club Celtic.[5] On 24 July, Celtic announced that Yang had signed on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[6] Yang made his Celtic debut in a 4–2 victory over Ross County on 5 August. He also made his UEFA Champions League debut as a starter in a 2–1 defeat to Lazio on 4 October. He scored his first goal for Celtic in a 6–0 victory over Aberdeen on 12 November.

On 12 February 2025, Yang provided his first Champions League assist in a 2–1 loss to Bayern Munich.[7] On 1 March, he had come on as a 65th minute substitute against St Mirren, and was named the Player of the Match by having two goals and one assist which broke a 2–2 tie.[8][9]

On 3 January 2026, Yang broke down Rangers' defense with his dribbling to score the opening goal, but Celtic lost 3–1 in the Old Firm derby despite his solo goal.[10] On 10 May, he once again scored a goal in the Old Firm derby, and Celtic won 3–1 this time.[11] In the 2025–26 season, he was promoted from substitute to starter at the club, and helped them surpass the record of 55 Scottish league titles, set by Rangers.[12] The following week, Celtic extended their contract with him until 2030.[13]

International career

Yang was selected for the South Korea national team for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, playing two matches as a substitute.[14]

Yang was called up to the national team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[15] On 18 June 2026, he made his FIFA World Cup debut in a 1–0 defeat to Mexico.[16]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 6 September 2026[14]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Gangwon FC B 2021[17] K4 League 214———214
Gangwon FC 2021 K League 1 9010——100
2022 K League 1 36820——388
2023 K League 1 21120——231
Total 66950——719
Celtic 2023–24 Scottish Premiership 24120104[c]0311
2024–25 Scottish Premiership 23531206[c]0346
2025–26 Scottish Premiership 31840319[d]14710
2026–27 Scottish Premiership 5200002[c]072
Total 8316916121111919
Career total 170291416121121132
  1. ↑ Includes Korean FA Cup, Scottish Cup
  2. ↑ Includes Scottish League Cup
  3. 1 2 3 Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  4. ↑ Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League

International

As of match played 18 June 2026[18]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
South Korea 202310
202420
202530
202640
Total100

Honours

Celtic

South Korea U23

Individual

Notes

  1. ↑ Includes one appearance as an overage player in Asian Games.

References

  1. ↑ FC, Celtic. "Hyunjun Yang". Celtic FC. Retrieved 14 August 2025.
  2. ↑ 강원FC, 박상혁·양현준·김기환·김대우 '신인 계약' (in Korean). Yonhap News Agency. 7 January 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 [GOAL LIVE] 양현준, K리그1 영플레이어상 수상…"시즌 전까지만 해도 받을 줄 몰랐다". Goal.com (in Korean). 24 October 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  4. ↑ [인터뷰] '토트넘전 라이징스타' 양현준 "언젠간 국대로 뛰고파". Nate.com (in Korean). Ilyo Shinmun. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  5. ↑ 강원FC 양현준 셀틱 이적 '한국 축구 발전 위한 대승적 결정' (in Korean). Gangwon FC. 15 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  6. ↑ "Celtic sign Hyunjun Yang on five-year deal from Gangwon FC". BBC Sport. 24 July 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  7. ↑ "Celtic vs. Bayern Munich Match Report – Wednesday February 12, 2025 (Leg 1)". FBref. Retrieved 14 February 2025.
  8. ↑ "ST MIRREN 2 CELTIC 5: WHAM, BANG, THANK YOU, YANG". Celtic Quick News. 1 March 2025. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  9. ↑ "여친 오고 더 잘한다, 집 갈 때 꽃 사가겠다"...양현준 세인트 미렌전 2골 1도움 활약 비결은 '사랑' (in Korean). InterFootball. 2 March 2025. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  10. ↑ "Celtic 1-3 Rangers (Jan 3, 2026) Game Analysis". ESPN. 3 January 2026. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  11. ↑ "Scottish Premiership: Celtic 3-1 Rangers". BBC Sport. 10 May 2026. Retrieved 17 May 2026.
  12. ↑ "Celtic 3-1 Hearts: Martin O'Neill's side crowned Scottish Premiership champions on final day as Jambos miss out on historic title". Sky Sports. 17 May 2026. Retrieved 17 May 2026.
  13. ↑ "Yang extends his stay with Celtic until 2030". Celtic F.C. 23 May 2026. Retrieved 23 May 2026.
  14. 1 2 Yang Hyun-jun at Soccerway. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  15. ↑ "South Korea squad World Cup 2026: Which players have made it to the showpiece in USA, Mexico and Canada?". Goal. 16 May 2026. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  16. ↑ "Match Report, Group A, Mexico v. Korea Republic 1-0 (0-0)" (PDF). FIFA. 19 June 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  17. ↑ [오피셜] K리그 영플레이어 양현준, 셀틱과 2027/28까지 5년 계약 (in Korean). Sportivo. 24 July 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  18. ↑ "Yang Hyun-jun" (in Korean). KFA. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  19. ↑ "Celtic crowned Scottish champions with game to spare". BBC Sport. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
  20. ↑ "Brendan Rodgers '200% staying' after Celtic clinch 55th Scottish league title". The Guardian. 26 April 2025.
  21. ↑ "Celtic stun Hearts at the last in dramatic final-day shootout to retain Scottish title". The Guardian. 16 May 2026.
  22. ↑ "Celtic v Rangers: Watch Old Firm Scottish Cup final at Hampden". BBC Sport.
  23. ↑ "Celtic vs Dunfermline Athletic LIVE: Scottish Cup final". BBC Sport. 23 May 2026. Retrieved 24 May 2026.
  24. ↑ "Celtic 3–3 Rangers: Line-ups". BBC Sport. 15 December 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  25. ↑ "South Korea win WAFF U-23 Championship, Saudis 3rd". Arab News. 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  26. ↑ "Tottenham Hotspur 6–3 K-League XI". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 13 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  27. ↑ 강원 양현준, 7월 게토레이 ‘G MOMENT AWARD’ 수상 (in Korean). K League. 12 August 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
  28. ↑ KFA 시상식 개최 — 올해의 선수, 지도자, 심판상 등 수여 (in Korean). KFA. 23 December 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  29. 1 2 "A night of Celtic celebrations at club's Player of the Year event". Celtic F.C. 4 May 2026. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yang_Hyun-jun