Celtic hero warns fans about record signing Arne Engels

Celtic broke their transfer record in the summer when they shelled out a fee believed to be in the region of £11 million to sign Arne Engels from FC Augsburg. The Belgian international midfielder has come in and settled well, playing a starter role in Brendan Rodgers' side from the get-go, as one would have expected after a move of that magnitude.

Engels has shown flashes of his quality. But then, there have been some shaky performances as well. He did not look anywhere near good enough against Borussia Dortmund but still contributed with an assist.

To be fair, no Celtic player did on the night. Following that, he also put in an average performance against Ross County.

Celtic fans will get used to some inconsistency from a midfielder at this point in his career though. The Belgian is only 21 years of age.

Celtic hero warns fans about record signing Arne Engels

Club hero, Stan Petrov, has told Celtic fans what to expect from Engels and reminded them of the midfielder's limitations at this point. In the long run, he seems convinced by the Belgian's talent to shine through. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, he said The Sunday Post [print edition page 78]:

"By the looks of it, the new signings have settled in really well. Arne Engels and Luke McCowan have both hit the ground running.

“Arne is still a young man and finding his way in the game.

“He has arrived with a big price tag and a very good reputation. I’m certain, over the course of time, he will go all the way to achieve some memorable things with Celtic.

“But, remember, he is young. He will not sparkle in every single game. There will be little bumps here and there.

“That’s what happens. But he is quality through and through, I can all already see that."

Engels looks like a phenomenal talent for sure. But Celtic fans need to curb their expectations if they want to come in and immediately replace Matt O'Riley.

He is not at that level yet, especially in front of goal. Engels has yet to score from open play for Celtic. That does not mean that he won't develop that over time. One has to remember that O'Riley was not a consistent goalscorer himself until last season.

All things considered, Celtic have gotten themselves a solid player in Engels. But it might be important to show a bit of patience with him too.