Arne Engels will be a revelation in second season, just like Stan Petrov | OneFootball

Arne Engels will be a revelation in his second season, just like Stan Petrov…

Arne Engels of Celtic arrives prior to the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic FC and Hibernian FC at Celtic Park on May 10, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Arne Engels has admittedly at times struggled to live up to his £11 million price tag but he’s not the flop that some would have you think and he’s shown that in glimpses in many games as his goal and assist record would actually suggest.

Engels came to Celtic as a 20 year-old

Folk seem to conveniently forget that Arne was only 20 years old when he signed for the club and the pressure of being the club’s record signing as well as adapting to a new culture and style of football would have been a huge strain on such a young Bhoy.

27 August 2000: Stilian Petrov of Celtic celebrates during the Scottish Premier League match against Rangers at Celtic Park, in Glasgow, Scotland. Celtic won the match 6-2. Photo: Stu Forster /Allsport

Let’s go back twenty six years and to a player who faced the same situation and that would be a certain Stan Petrov who arrived at Celtic as a 19 year old for £3 million, a relatively high fee in those days for someone of notable ‘potential’.

19 year-old Stan Petrov looked like a fish out of water in his first season at Celtic

Stan arrived in Glasgow from Bulgaria with no experience of the culture, the language or indeed the expectations placed upon anyone representing a club like Celtic. That was evident in his first season at the club as he looked very much like the proverbial fish out of water and it all looked too much for him and his Celtic career didn’t look like going any further.

27 August 2000: Stilian Petrov of Celtic celebrates after scoring the second goal during the Glasgow Celtic v Glasgow Rangers Bank of Scotland Premier League match at Celtic Park. Photo Stu Forster/ALLSPORT

Then after the arrival of Martin O’Neill Stan knuckled down and with a year’s experience behind him he quickly became a fans favourite and the rest as they say is history.

Arne like Stan will be all the better after a first season getting used to playing for Celtic firmly behind him.

Arne Engels. Hearts v Celtic, Scottish Premiership, Tynecastle. 23 November 2024. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Arne Engels – First Season Overview

Notably, 8 of his 10 goals came from the penalty spot, highlighting his role as a reliable set-piece taker.

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

Arne Engels – First Season at Celtic Achievements

Arne Engels of Celtic FC and Jashari Ardon of Club Brugge during the UEFA Champions League match between Celtic and Club Brugge on November 27, 2024. Photo: Peter De Voecht