“If you can play at Celtic park you can play anywhere,” Arne Engels

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The Celtic Star

·30 September 2024

“If you can play at Celtic park you can play anywhere,” Arne Engels

Celtic’s record signing Arne Engels knows all about playing his football in Dortmund, having made his debut for Augsburg in a 4-3 defeat in the iconic Westfalenstadion…

The £11m Celtic star reckons that despite the unbelievable atmosphere created by the famous Dortmund yellow wall, no Celtic player should be too concerned about facing that because it’s no different to what they hear at Paradise in the the big Champions League nights.

Arne Engels together with his manager Brendan Rodgers spoke to the media at the Westfalenstadion this evening after training at Celtic Park before flying to Dortmund for match-day two of the Champions League group stage. Here’s everything that Arne Engels had to say ahead of the eagerly awaited Dortmund v Celtic match which is now less than 24 hours away…

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Q: What will you be telling your teammates about how you handle the atmosphere here and relish it, rather than be overcome and overawed by it?

Arne Engels: “I don’t really know, I didn’t speak to a lot of guys about it because they know it and we have an amazing atmosphere in Celtic Park. It’s kind of the same but everybody knows how to handle it. If you can play in Celtic Park, you can play everywhere.”

Q: Where do you think this Dortmund team is at the moment? They made the final last season but have lost a few players. How do you analyse how strong they are just now?

Arne Engels: “They’re a really good team. You see it in the league where they are playing. They’re always a good team to play against. I think they’ll be a good team and it is going to be a good game for us also. It’s a strong opponent but we are also in a good way, so it’s going to be good.”

(Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Q: Arne, is it right that you made your debut for Augsburg at Borussia Dortmund?

Arne Engels: “It was amazing! I came from the second division in Belgium, so coming here in front of 80,000 people was amazing. It was quite a crazy game – 4-3 to Dortmund, but it was amazing to be here and it’s close to Belgium so all my family was here. It was really great to get my debut here and to perform like this.”

Q: Do you feel that this time you’ll be coming to the stadium a more experienced player?

Arne Engels: “I hope so! Otherwise, I didn’t do a good job in two years! It’s going to be good, it’s good that I know the stadium but we just need to perform and look to ourselves. That’s what we are doing really well at the moment. We are sticking to the basics and we’re in a good mood – we want to do the same thing tomorrow.”

(Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Q: Is there a belief that you can come here and win?

Arne Engels: “I think it’s in every game. If you don’t have the belief then you’re better not coming here and staying home. We want to come here and win. It’s the same in every competition. You always need this kind of mindset.”

Q: Where do you think this team is in terms of mindset and quality compared to Dortmund?

Arne Engels: “I think everybody is really focused on their jobs and that’s what makes us really strong as a team. We are setting the standards every day for ourselves and doing a good job with that. Now, it is up to us to just show it like we do every week.”

(Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Q: You earned plaudits as a team from the first game, what statement would it send if you were to get a result here tomorrow?

Arne Engels: “We don’t want to set a statement, we just want to perform and do our best. That’s what we are doing well in this competition and in the cups. We just want to perform at our best.”

Q: Is life at Celtic what you thought it would be like so far? Has it exceeded expectations?

Arne Engels: “Much more! It’s been an amazing few weeks for me, to come here to Celtic. Everybody is so nice to me and the people and players at the club are helping me. That’s really nice and that’s a really good feeling for me also.”

(Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Q: Does a night like tomorrow justify your decision to come to Celtic?

Arne Engels: “It’s a nice bonus, but it’s not the only reason that I came to Celtic. It’s also because it’s a really amazing club and the fans are amazing. It’s a really nice bonus, it’s nice to play in the Champions League. I hope we do good and I think we will do good, so it’s going to be nice.”