Martin O'Neill heaps praise on Celtic winger after Euro win

The 23-year-old started on the left wing for Celtic in the Netherlands and netted the equaliser, sparking a memorable 3-1 victory against Robin van Persie's side at De Kuip.

Interim manager O'Neill was quick to commend the South Korean winger, who almost left the club for Birmingham City in the summer.

He said: "Well, they say to me that sometimes if it doesn't work for him, he might go back into his shell.

"But there's a player there.

"He does things that we can't do.

"He can turn players; he can beat players.

"He's strong, and he can manoeuvre it, and he can do all of those things."

O'Neill emphasised the importance of boosting Yang's confidence, highlighting the difficulty for wide players to keep trying even after losing possession.

He added: "It's just a matter of giving him a boost of confidence the whole way through.

"And even if he loses it, the hardest thing in the world is for a wide player to lose it twice in succession and then try and go again.

"Only great, great players can do that."

O'Neill's words were filled with encouragement, urging Yang to remain positive and take every opportunity to go past players and make things happen for the team.

He said: "So that was the encouragement.

"If you lose it, if you've lost it, trying to do something really positive, don't worry about it.

"You'll get another opportunity, because you feel as if he can go past players.

"He can make things happen for us."

Yang's equaliser was a turning point in the match, as he converted a Reo Hatate lobbed cross to bring Celtic back into the game after Feyenoord's opener.

Hatate then put the Hoops in front just before half-time, and Benjamin Nygren sealed the victory with a goal 10 minutes from time.