Celtic have turned down an approach from West Ham for Arne Engels, with manager Martin O’Neill saying the offer for the 22-year-old Belgium midfielder fell well short of the club’s valuation. O’Neill also confirmed Everton’s interest in 27-year-old Canada right-back Alistair Johnston, noting he received a call last week from David Moyes signalling that contact would follow.
Nottingham Forest previously failed with a £25m bid for Engels in February. The midfielder joined Celtic from Augsburg in August 2024. Johnston, who started all five of Canada’s matches at the World Cup, arrived from Montreal in January 2023.
O’Neill described the attention in both players as disappointing but unsurprising, acknowledging it can be hard to keep players who want to test themselves in a major league. He stressed the club will do everything possible to retain them but, if that proves impossible, will move to find replacements—though replacing that calibre of player will be difficult.
This summer, Celtic have sold Daizen Maeda to Ipswich Town and added forwards Kasper Høgh and Camilo Durán. O’Neill said he anticipated movement around some of Celtic’s top performers, hoped serious interest would not emerge, but accepted it was likely. He added that reinforcements are needed regardless and that Celtic are closing in on new arrivals.