Development in football finds its own path. Nantes, who finished 13th in France last season, with a pulling power that matches Rennes, where Kyogo moved to and who finished 12th, have come to Scotland for a midfielder. They have booked a medical for Kwon Hyeok-kyu, who joined Celtic two years ago today, but has yet to play for the champions.
After six months adjusting to life in Europe, Kwon went on loan to St Mirren before spending last season at Hibs. Celtic would have followed his progress at both clubs but did not see enough over two years to invest development resources in him.
By contrast, his stats and time at St Mirren and Hibs was enough to catch the French club’s attention. Ligue 1 is a significantly higher standard than the Scottish Premiership, as Kyogo may have pondered. France is the European hotbed of player development. Nowhere else has the volume of players and the roadmap infrastructure. So we are entitled to be surprised at this move. Kwon has a hard shift ahead if he is to make the grade there, let’s hope he gets a chance, though.
Oldtim
Dave Morrison’s funeral is at 1pm on Monday 4 August, at Dundas Funeral Home, Thomas Cuthell & Sons, Bo’Ness Road, Grangemouth, FK3 8AF. Full details can be found here, including how to livestream.
The family have extended an invitation to attend to Dave’s CQN friends. Recollections of Dave will be read out at the funeral, his niece Fiona asked if you have a memory you would like shared, please send it to her: fionamacdonald1@yahoo.co.uk . The family are also grateful for all the kind messages about Dave posted when he passed.
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Went to see Simple Mind’s in Murcia the other night. Jim Kerr came down to the front to do some palm slapping and selfies. Someone gave him a rolled up Celtic flag which he briefly looked at to see what it was then quickly discarded it.
Clearly didn’t want photographed with it.
Did he stop supporting us after the failed takeover? Seemed an over reaction (I was only a couple of metres away).
Apart from that, it was a great evening.
He’s always kept it quiet DB
as opposed to Rod
At 250K, Nantes aren’t exactly betting the farm on Kwon.
Kwon viewed playing for Celtic as a “childhood dream”, inspired by watching clubs featuring Ki Sung‑yueng and Cha Du‑ri………….he lived the dream.
Good Luck 👍
.
AnDun
Unless it is a really sh@@ty farm.:)
Hopefully he does well.
Good luck Kwon , the buddies will miss you
Best wishes to everyone attending OldTims funeral and anyone unable to attend.
Cost a quoted million and out the door after x2 loan spells for $250k.
Arriving with us, I’m sure he said something about wanting to test himself in the Champs League and that he likened himself to – canny remember the name – elite level midfield enforcer.
At 250k – and likely modest wages ? – it surely wouldn’t have been out of the reach of Hibs, St Mirren or any other Premiership club to make a pitch for the guy if they thought he would give them summit in Scotland.
Yet Nantes are mibby using some Bloom-like data cruncher to spot something in the player that even the Hearts analytics machine has missed.
Awrrabest and bon chance, big man.
Kwon to Nantes is 100% a statistical buy. They’ve probably seen the same characteristics that we initially identified. Nantes will likely discover what we and Hibs discovered- he ain’t that good.
But at 250K, it’s not even a risk for Nantes. They’ve bought themselves a half time draw ticket.
I’m all for buying cheap spreadsheet identitied players – just don’t base your entire summer transfer window on it. If you do, be prepared to lose your job if it all goes wrong…
Yang will be like a new signing
An Dun
When did we see Kwon play for us ?
I didn’t think he had. Hard to assess if he didn’t have a chance but I may have missed it.
Narowki was similar but at least I saw him play.
Burnley
Bit of a pre season game, maybe Athletico Bilbao?
Good afternoon all from Celtic Park. 2 laps around the stadium in this heat, fooking knackered. 🥵
BTW, I didn’t try the WiFi at the game on Saturday. Anyone know if it has improved?
Good luck to Kwon.
Very difficult for very young men to come to the other side of the world into a different culture AND a very clearly established footballing orthodoxy … and come out on top.
If I were to ask myself .. “How would I have fared professionally if I’d gone to Korea in my early 20s?”
… the answer would be obvious.
I hope we inserted a sell-on clause.
He might just have something about him.
BIGRAILROADBLUES
No it hasn’t according to reports.
GARYGILLESPIES
Played the first half
B78 – what GGH said.
He turned out in that friendly … unfortunately for him just a few days after his cowardly lion “Put ’em up!” style announcement of his arrival.
Expectations were quickly reset.
Never has the description “raw” been more apt.
Kwon started a game I was at, can’t remember exactly but think it was a league cup game against lower league opposition.
He struggled.
The press and Celtic targets …..in the space of 2 days a player we apparently made a bid of 1.5 million for, his club and transfemarket both valued the player at 5 million euro. He is now worth according to the desperate smsm a whopping 7.2 million sterling or nearly 8 million euro !!…talk about inflation…Smells of Kvistgaarden who we were told his club wanted 13-15 million euro and ended up going to Norwich for 6.9 million sterling or 7.6-7.8 million Euro
Think it’s my biggest bugbear atm
BACK TO BASICS – GLASS HALF FULL
When you’re not first team ready very difficult to develop playing against Civil Service Strollers, Gala Fairydean, East Kilbride etc, in the Lowland league.
BSR
Thanks 👍
As mistakes or failures go, Kwon must be one of the least costly ever.
Nothing to brag about but when some failures are guaranteed in recruitment a model that limits the impact is better than one that hopes that they never happen and then suffers the consequences when they do.
That we’ve stopped signing players like Marvin Comperr completely and seem to back on track with our model is very encouraging. Kwon seems to be a “mistake” were prepared to make again.
Ajax 1 Celtic 2
My mate is in Como for the game. Having a blast and hasn’t seen many of their hun fans. Yet. He’s renamed it Costa Fortune. 😂
Its nice to be nice but Kwon was hopeless.
Poorly scouted and out of his depth. Not his fault, he was given an opportunity and likely a big wage rise and he gave it a try but lack of ability will always get found out no matter how people try to paint it.
What Nantes see I have no idea but not sure we will hear anything more of him.
Gotta kiss a few frogs i suppose…….
What will Celtic do when Corbyn outlaws £Billionaires?
Even Grok knows about the lobbies!
Grok:
“Absolutely, new parties untainted by Israeli lobbies could restore sovereignty in UK and US. Evidence from AIPAC’s $100 million+ spending in US elections and CFI’s [conservative friends of israel] sway over 80% Tory MP’s shows deep entanglement. Voters must demand independence to end such inconsistencies.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GwnwzzzWMAE8Mfs.jpg?name=orig
LAB, LIB, CON, SNP, GRE, REF, PLYD, FF, FG, SF? DUP, etc, are on the way to the broo for being controlled by the lobbies, or if the WPB have anything to do with it, jailed for genocide complicity, rigging politics, etc, then there is the media who are probably all in in these lobbies as well?!
George Galloway:
“I congratulate @jeremycorbyn on his announcement of his new political party. As the leader of the @WorkersPartyGB I long-hoped he would take the Melenchon path of leading a Popular Front but that ship seems to have sailed. I look forward to meeting Mr Corbyn to discuss an electoral agreement to avoid clashes. Clashes between us would only benefit Keir Starmer.”
https://xcancel.com/georgegalloway/status/1948359057170972954#m
why is Brendan Rodgers telling everyone he knows what is happening with transfers, that he has the final say, that getting first team ready players is required, but also longer term development players are all part of the succession planning.
Doesnt he know that many celtic bloggers know better, know it is PL controlled, and know that he is not being supported by the board, and indeed will be forced to quit.
why is he actually saying these thing in interviews.
——————
It’s pretty straightforward. There will be players within our recruitment team that are not just for now but for the future.
“Clearly, I will look at those players and assess, and see if those players can come in and play. Then there will be other players we specifically need. It’s still very much joined up.
“I suppose it’s more around whether the players are for now or later. People know the model over a number of years. There are players who come in who are maybe not expected to hit the ground running, but some of them do.
“That’s what I need to assess, those guys coming in. But I also need to win now, and we need to get those players in. Either way, I will be responsible for that.
“Club signings, with the greatest respect, I don’t care where they come (from), I just need good players in the building who can help us win today, tomorrow and the next week.
“I’ve always developed players in my career, so I respect that side of it, but also the need for the present.”
Rodgers can understand fans frustration with the Hoops desperately needing at least one winger and another striker ahead of the new campaign – and the Champions League qualifier on the horizon.
He said: “I respect what the supporters are – I want players in tomorrow. But I understand the market and what you need to do to bring a player in.
“It’s not as easy as clicking your fingers. We all want them in at the start, absolutely, and none more so than the coach.
“But there is a middle and an end, and as long as you have them in by the end, it’s such a long season, so I’m very hopeful we’ll do that.
“I am, because there is a lot of hard work going on behind the scenes in terms of players.
“Of course, you look at our squad and you can see where there are needs for improvement. It’s pretty clear.
“The market is difficult in terms of timings and everything else. On the same token, we are only 11 days away from the new season and we want to get players in as quickly as we can.
“If you are looking to bring in a player that will improve us, the other club is looking to maximise their assets as well.”
Celtic have a pile of cash in the bank after the £17m sale of Nicholas Kuhn on top of impressive reserves.
But Rodgers is not demanding a bumper war chest as he defended last summer’s £26m trio of Arne Engels, Adam Idah and Auston Trusty.
He said: “There was a bit of focus around the players who came in last year and question marks around what they brought.
“For one, they didn’t set the price. But, two, Celtic did as well as they’ve done for a decade and those guys really helped us.
“Trusty was outstanding in the Champions League. Engels, his running power, was really helpful for us, he’s a young player who will get better.
“Idah scored over 20 goals and still has improvements to make. It depends on perspective. I felt we needed physicality and power for the Champions League and that really helped us.
“Those players have still more to develop.
“Whether a player costs £250,000 or £12m, I’m not really concerned. I’ve seen and worked with players who have cost more but others who have cost less but are much better players.
“I’m not really fixated on, ‘I need £10m, £15m or whatever’ – I just need quality players.”
bournesouprecipe on 24th July 2025 1:14 pm
BACK TO BASICS – GLASS HALF FULL
“When you’re not first team ready very difficult to develop playing against Civil Service Strollers, Gala Fairydean, East Kilbride etc, in the Lowland league.”
Doaks to Liverpool, Vata to Millwall, Cummings to West Ham etc.
I know they haven’t exactly set the heather on fire at these clubs, but, they ended up there after playing seasons v these very clubs. If you’re no good enough then, unfortunately, yer no good enough, por cierto
MOISEY17 on 24TH JULY 2025 2:17 PM
Its nice to be nice but Kwon was hopeless.
Poorly scouted and out of his depth. Not his fault, he was given an opportunity and likely a big wage rise and he gave it a try but lack of ability will always get found out no matter how people try to paint it.
What Nantes see I have no idea but not sure we will hear anything more of him.
————————————
Gotta kiss a few frogs i suppose…….
Indeed, even if they’re called Marvin Comperr
We’ll be signing players ad infinitum, as sure as night follows day, some will make it under any model or metric that’s used, mistakes in the past, present and in the future.
Every transfer is a punt,
bigrailroadblues on 24th July 2025 2:16 pm
My mate is in Como for the game. Having a blast and hasn’t seen many of their hun fans. Yet. He’s renamed it Costa Fortune. 😂
—————-
I was in Como several years ago with work assingment.
Early springtime, and I had the bewildered wrath of my Italian colleagues by declaring it as not as nice as loch lomond.
passed the stadium as well, which was 3/4 unroofed, and tiny.
i know the owners are now also super rich, but it did seem as strange place for us to go test ourselved,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadio_Giuseppe_Sinigaglia#/media/File:Interno_stadio_Sinigaglia_Como_10_settembre_2022.jpg
Ffs I really don’t like transfer windows. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. We will be fine. Brendan told me this morning in Alfredos. 👍
does this work
what a tribute – celtic was in his blood to the very end.
https://celticfc.tv/videos/80026739
Good luck to Kwon. Nantes up there with Bordeaux, Marseilles and St Etienne as traditionally big clubs in Frances. Great move for him.
I’m fine with punts like him so long as it’s in proportion. If the whole window is punts (copyright M Lawwell) the risk is too great.
I might be proven wrong but this window has had good balance of moving on those we need to, blooding some of our emerging talent (Kenny) and surgically adding talent in key positions (KT, Nygren). I’m not greedy for huge spending for the sake of it or loads of further signings.
We look well covered for centre forward (Idah, Maaeda, Kenny. And the 2 new lads; our midfield looks frightening with 6 really strong options plus good youth talent as back up; two top goalies, two top full backs and very decent centre halves, including young Dane Murray.
We need a couple of wingers, especially if Yang goes. One on loan until Jota’s back and one permanent. That’s unless we sell Daizen, Reo or AN other for big money, in which case we better have our targets ready or we’re in trouble.
🍀 / 𝘾𝙚𝙡𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙁𝘾 – 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙛𝙚𝙧 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙬 𝙎𝙤 𝙁𝙖𝙧…
First team players only
Spend
🏴 Doohan – Free
🏴 Tierney – Free
🏴 Osmand – Free
🇸🇪 Nygren – £2M
🇯🇵 Inamura – £250K
🇯🇵 Yamada – £1.5M
💷 Total – £3.5M approx
👋🏽 Income
🇩🇪 Kuhn – £17M
🇸🇪 Lagerbielke – £2.2M
🏴 Taylor – Free
🏴 Bain – Free
🇵🇱 Nawrocki – Loan
🇭🇳 Palma – Loan
🇦🇺 Tilio – Loan
🇳🇱 Frimpong – £5M (Sell on fee)
🇰🇷 Kwon – 250K
💷 Total – £25M approx
BIGRAILROADBLUES on 24TH JULY 2025 1:07 PM
BTW, I didn’t try the WiFi at the game on Saturday. Anyone know if it has improved
What??????
There is stadium WiFi at CP?
Shoorly shum mishtake?