Have Celtic Already Proven Arne Engels Was Worth the Money?

There has been plenty of debate over Arne Engels since he arrived at Celtic, but it’s time to stop looking at what he cost and start looking at what he’s actually worth.

The transfer fee became the story almost from the moment Celtic completed the deal.

Whether it was £11 million or thereabouts, it smashed the club’s previous transfer record and took us into the 8 figure bracket finally for a player.

Any 6/10 display from the young Belgian though seemed to bring numerous observations and comment relating to the money Celtic had spent on him.

“Eleven million pounds? He has to do better than that.”

The fee became the yardstick by which every touch, every pass and every performance was measured.

But here’s the thing.

I don’t think the fee was the player’s problem. I think it was the club’s.

If the reports at the time were accurate, Celtic had identified Engels weeks before they eventually signed him.

Early estimates suggested he may have been available for significantly less, yet as the transfer window ticked down, the selling club’s position strengthened.

The closer you get to deadline day, the more leverage the selling club has. Celtic struggle to learn from this.

We have seen this movie so many times.

Players reportedly available for £5-6 million suddenly become £9 million players by the final days of the window simply because time has run out.

Adam Idah anyone?

That isn’t bad luck. That’s poor negotiation.

Celtic show hesitancy and nerves when sitting in the prospective buying clubs chair.

It’s an area where Celtic have often frustrated myself and many supporters.

When selling players, the club are usually decisive, disciplined and rarely blink first.

They set their valuation, stick to it and more often than not walk away with exactly what they wanted.

Recruitment often feels different, if not the polar opposite to be honest.

Offers and counter-offers continue until the final days of the window before Celtic eventually pay close to or often over the asking price anyway.

If Engels is the perfect example, then Celtic have a huge case to learn from, in a variety of ways.

Firstly, from a football perspective. Bringing a player in so late means they miss the majority of pre-season, lose valuable time learning the manager’s system and take longer to settle into the squad.

That has an impact.

Secondly, financially. If the fee did rise as the window progressed, Celtic may well have paid a premium simply because they delayed.

Ironically, that higher fee then became ammunition against the player himself.

This where I get really frustrated at the conditioning Celtic have managed to do to the fans over the last 2 decades.

We have been conditioned to think £11 million was outrageous because it broke Celtic’s transfer record.

But football has changed. Transfer fees have exploded across Europe.

What felt extraordinary by Celtic standards wasn’t remotely extraordinary in the wider market.

Here’s where ambitious fees and transfer targets pay off however.

Celtic have added more trophies.

They have made the last 24 of the Champions League in that time too.

The exact place I feel we should be aiming for each season.

Arne played a huge role in that CL Campaign as well as a big player for Martin O’Neill in our drive to win the SPFL Title.

Engels has developed further, gained valuable European experience and continues to attract attention from clubs across Europe.

Reports now suggest his we could rake in £25m MINIMUM!

Factor in Engels transfer cost, wages and we will still clear a £10m profit as well as 2 years good service in the team.

Supporters shouldn’t fear ambitious transfer fees if the player justifies them or the football guys want them.

What we should expect is a recruitment strategy with the confidence to move decisively when the right player has been identified.

Likewise, when it comes to the time they are ready to leave, we should have confidence succession planning will be well in place to have a swift replacement lined up.

I hope the positives from the Engels deal will encourage Celtic to repeat similar moves.

I am also hoping the mistakes from the same transfer are learned from too.

Whatever happens, I have enjoyed Arne Engels at Celtic.

If he is, as expected, to depart this Summer then he would go with my best wishes, a good fee and no doubt forty links a year of returning for the rest of his career.

I look forward to seeing how his and other potential exiting Celtic players fees are going to be spent.

I discussed this and much more yesterday over on the Bhoycie Bus, you can catch up here.

Keep Your Eyes on The Board.