Martin O’Neill hopes to have Hyun-jun Yang available against Kilmarnock on Sunday, revealing that the winger is already pushing to return against Beşiktaş.

The South Korean has done some training this week after returning from the Asian Games with an injury.

Thursday’s Europa League match looks likely to come too soon, but O’Neill’s update offers encouragement ahead of Celtic’s final fixture before the international break.

Keep track of every knock and return with our Celtic injury news.

“Yang’s done a little bit of training. Yes, maybe too early for him for tomorrow. Hopefully he’s going to be around for Sunday. Definitely wants to be.

“And if Yang had his way he’d even be thinking about tomorrow himself. He’s really keyed up for it now.”

That enthusiasm is welcome after a frustrating spell on the sidelines.

Yang won gold with South Korea at the Asian Games, but has been unable to build on that success back at Celtic because of his fitness problems.

O’Neill had previously identified this week as his expected return to training. Now, a place in Sunday’s squad is a possibility, although the manager has stopped short of confirming his availability.

The update follows another useful development for Celtic’s plans. The Asian Cup was postponed on Tuesday, removing the possibility of Yang leaving for that tournament during January if selected.

The competition’s proposed new dates are December 23, 2027 to January 21, 2028, subject to FIFA approval.

Once fit, Yang should therefore have a clearer opportunity to put a sustained run together at club level.

Celtic could certainly use another natural winger. Finding the right balance across the front line has been a recurring problem, and his return would give O’Neill another option without asking a striker to fill a wide position.

Yang clearly wants to get going immediately. Sunday would be a welcome starting point.