Jurgen Klinsmann insists travelling to Ayrshire to watch Celtic star Oh Hyeon-gyu tomorrow is all part of his plans to end 64 years of hurt for South Korea in the Asian Cup.
The German icon will be an interested onlooker at Rugby Park along with his No.2 - former Israel manager Andreas Herzog - as he embarks on a tour of Europe to look at South Korea's players based in the continent.
The ex-Spurs and Bayern Munich striker, who has also managed Germany and the USA, was only appointed in February, but has already picked Oh for two friendlies last month and regards the new Hoops signing as an important part of his plans for the future.
South Korea are among the favourites to win the Asian Cup which will be played in Qatar in January next year. They haven't won the competition since 1960 and are desperate to change that.
READ MORE: Celtic legend in Alastair Johnston 'best of both worlds' call
Klinsmann said: "The journey to countries in Europe which will begin this weekend is very important and is all part of the preparation for the Asian Cup.
"Hopefully, all of the players I watch will get as many minutes as possible. It will be nice to go to England, Scotland, Germany and Italy to see them.
"The goal is to win the Asian Cup. And to do that, you need a lot of work. This starts now.
"From now until January, everything myself and the coaching staff do is geared up to the tournament in Qatar."
Our Celtic Digest newsletter brings exclusive content directly to you rather than solely through the website. You can already find us on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram but we will also send bespoke opinion pieces and special features directly to your email inbox every evening. Not only will you receive this article from Sean Martin, Tony Haggerty or Aidan Macdonald (or, sometimes, from all three) but you will also get easy access to our best content from the last 24 hours too. It’s a great way to keep up to date with what’s happening at Ange Postecoglou’s Scottish champions. To sign up, simply take five seconds to type in your email here. Simple!
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel