Celtic could see £6m bid accepted to sign their new Arne Engels

Celtic central midfielder Arne Engels has been the subject of plenty of speculation already in the summer transfer window, less than a month into it.

The Hoops still have just under two months left of the window to navigate if they want to keep hold of their Belgium international, who has attracted interest from several Premier League teams.

Sunderland, Nottingham Forest, and Crystal Palace are all said to be pushing to bring the central midfielder down to the Premier League before the end of the window.

The Scottish Premiership giants want a massive fee of £25m to allow the midfielder to move on from Parkhead, though, and it remains to be seen if any of them are prepared to pay that price.

Celtic would bank a significant profit on the club-record fee of £11m that they paid Augsburg for his services in the summer of 2024 if they do rake in £25m for him this summer.

Celtic could see £6m bid accepted for new midfielder

It would be a big blow to lose the Belgian star in the coming weeks because of the threat that he provides from a midfield role, having scored 17 goals and supplied 21 assists in 98 appearances for the club in all competitions.

The Premiership champions, though, are already looking at a player who could arrive at Parkhead as the perfect replacement for Engels ahead of next season.

According to Football Insider, Celtic are one of the teams interested in a deal to sign Tottenham Hotspur attacking midfielder Alfie Devine in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that the Premier League side are willing to cash in on the 21-year-old talent and are prepared to accept a bid of up to £6m for him.

It adds that Preston North End, who had him on loan last season, did not activate their option to sign him permanently for £4.5m, and the Hoops could now swoop to see an offer of £1.5m more than that accepted for him.

Football Insider reveals that Martin O’Neill is the driving force behind the club’s interest in the English youngster, and that the £6m fee is seen as achievable for the Scottish giants.

How Alfie Devine can be Celtic’s next Arne Engels

Celtic need to bring in a player who can offer a threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals in the middle of the park if they lose Engels to a Premier League club before the end of the window.

That is why Devine, once hailed as “outstanding” by journalist Josh Bunting, would be the perfect signing for the Premiership side this summer, as he would be O’Neill’s new version of the Belgian ace.

Their respective performances at league level in the Championship and the Premiership last season show that they both offer similar qualities in midfield.

Devine’s haul of eight goals and six assists for Preston, who finished in midtable in the Championship, shows that he has the quality to be an Engels-esque player for Celtic in the middle of the park.

He has the desire and the quality to burst forward to support the attack with goals, whilst he also has the vision and the passing ability to create quality chances for his teammates, creating three more ‘big chances’ than Engels last term.

Devine scored six goals in 30 Pro League games on loan at Westerlo in the 2024/25 campaign, and scored 13 goals in 49 matches for Tottenham’s U21s at academy level, which shows that his goalscoring form for Preston was not a flash in the pan.

The Celtic star and the Spurs youngster also posted incredibly similar numbers defensively, with their duels won and tackles and interceptions made, which suggests that Celtic would not weaken their team out of possession with this signing.

Winning the race for the £6m star, therefore, would allow the board to open themselves up to offers for Engels from the likes of Palace and Sunderland, because they would have a ready-made replacement already in the building.

That is why the club should pay the £6m asking price to bring him over to Parkhead in the coming weeks, as the midfield ace could play a starring role for O’Neill next term.