If you’re an Arne Engels critic it’s maybe time to ‘haud yer wheesht’

The Celtic Star

·9 maggio 2025

If you’re an Arne Engels critic it’s maybe time to ‘haud yer wheesht’

Callum McGregor has vowed that the Celtic squad will shield Arne Engels from his detractors, offering a passionate defence of the club’s record signing…

Arne Engels of Celtic celebrates at full time during the SPL | Premier League match between Dundee United FC and Celtic FC at Tannadice Park on April 26, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The £11 million midfielder signed from Augsburg last summer has scored 10 goals in his first season, but the 21-year-old has faced criticism for his overall impact, despite being a consistent starter.

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Calmac showing how great a Celtic captain he is by protecting a young star from his critics

However, McGregor has strongly rejected the flak the Belgian has received, delivering a passionate defence of his teammate and affirming the value he has added to Brendan Rodgers’ side.

Engels featured for 60 minutes in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with theRangers at Ibrox, and the mixed feedback on his performance highlighted the inconsistent opinions held by both fans and pundits.

St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup Semi-Final at Hampden Park on 20 April 2025: Arne Engels Celtic. Photo Alex Todd IMAGO

“He was excellent, I think what everyone forgets is he is still so young, he is such a young player.”

The captain was pleased with what he saw both in the match against the Ibrox club and throughout the season as a whole. As reported by Daily Record, McGregor said: “He was excellent, I think what everyone forgets is he is still so young, he is such a young player. He’s in his first season and nominated for young player of the year and shows how well he has done.”

“He comes with a mammoth price tag, straight away everyone forgets the fact he is only 21, and sometimes in the building we think he is way more mature than what he actually is. I think he has done amazing, again he was excellent in that midfield three and Paulo coming into the game I thought was excellent as well.”

Arne Engels celebrates.Ross County v Celtic in Dingwall. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

“He can be really proud of his first season because I know how difficult it is”

“He can be really proud of his first season because I know how difficult it is, like I said, and now people are not cutting him the slack because he has been that good and demand more from him, because he has come with a big price tag. We have to protect him and we will.”

The 31 year-old is fully confident that Engels’ best performances at Celtic are still ahead of him. He added: “He has got massive quality, massive ability. He has got a great temperament, like I said, he has scored 10 goals, a really good return for his first season.”

“He has played 10 games in the Champions League, he is only going to get better, which is a brilliant thing for us.

Arne Engels & Brendan Rodgers during the Premier Sports Cup Final victory over theRangers at Hampden on 15 December 2024. Photo AJ for The Celtic Star

“For a first season, to come in and settle the way that he has, we are really proud of him and happy with what he has done. He has played 10 Champions League games, all these derby games, and is part of a successful Celtic team who are going to finish at least 17 points clear, and we have another Cup Final to add to what we have already done.

“To be a part of it, to be a huge part of it, to have played so many games then what a really good return and such a bulk of work that he will have that experience and he will come back in the summer and be even better for it.”

Adam Idah celebrates scoring at Ibrox to level the score at 1-1. theRangers v Celtic, 4 May 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Like Adam Idah, Arne’s problem appears to be related to his transfer fee. The sum Celtic paid for the two players is nothing to do with them but it seems to be that some supporters reckon that they should be pretty much perfect performers in every game and if they’re not then the criticism starts.

Both will be better next season of that there is no doubt but neither has had a BAD season this year. For Arne as a first season settling in at Celtic and celebrating his 21st birthday, he has done as well as could reasonably be expected. Brendan is clearly happy because he keeps selecting Engels to play.

Brendan Rodgers and the Celtic players post-match. theRangers v Celtic, 4 May 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

The manager’s plan is to continue signing players of a higher value than the £3m punt projects approach which was in full flow when he walked back in the door in June 2023. As a support we need to adjust to this too. It’s still players Celtic want to develop that are coming in, and the process is the same. It’s just that the raw material is of a higher quality to begin with.

So if you’re an Arne Engels critic it’s time to hard yer wheesht, or you’ll have Calmac to deal with.

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