During the summer, Atalanta made an approach to take Arne Engels from Celtic. A move never materialised and he’s still at Celtic Park, now back under Martin O’Neill’s orders.
The midfielder has been a regular for Celtic this season, playing over 2,100 minutes from 33 matches. He’s contributed four goals and five assists.
O’Neill and Celtic face a risk of losing the Belgium international. This is at least what Sky Deutschland are reporting.
According to them, RB Leipzig have set their sights on the 22-year-old. He knows the Bundesliga well as he spent 18 months at FC Augsburg before moving to Celtic Park in August 2024.
Leipzig are considering bringing him back to the Bundesliga in this window. As of now, the threat isn’t serious for the Scottish club.
That’s because Leipzig are focusing on Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Rocco Reitz. He’s their top target for next season. They are working to secure his services, but it could all collapse.
According to Sky, the 23-year-old German has a release clause of €25-28m. This would be high for Leipzig, who have already explored other options. This is where the Celtic man comes into the picture.
Celtic player represents second choice transfer
As well as Engels, Switzerland and AC Milan midfielder Ardon Jashari is also on the list.
Should the Bundesliga side fail to sign Reitz, they will consider signing either Engels or Jashari. The Serie A side reportedly paid over €35m to Club Brugge to sign the latter in August. He has a contract until 2030 and could cost more than Reitz.
The Celtic player’s contract lasts until 2028, and Transfermarkt currently values him at €10m. It’s possible the Bhoys could demand more and he may be still cheaper for Leipzig.
For now, Leipzig will continue to monitor both Engels and Jashari, should they need to move to second choice.
