Celtic’s board backed Brendan Rodgers in the summer transfer window by smashing the club’s transfer record to sign central midfielder Arne Engels.
The Hoops reportedly splashed out a fee of £11m to sign the Belgium international from German side Augsburg to bolster their options in the middle of the park.
Engels has produced two goals and three assists in seven appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants, as he has hit the ground running in Glasgow.
He is not the only star midfielder within the squad, though, as captain Callum McGregor continues to go from strength to strength at Parkhead.
Callum McGregor's soaring market value
The former Scotland international, who retired from national team duty earlier this year, joined the club’s academy in 2001 at the age of eight, meaning that he did not cost the Hoops a penny.
He came up through the ranks in the youth system and made his breakthrough at first-team level in the 2014/15 campaign, after scoring 12 goals in 37 games for Notts County in League One in the previous season.
At the start of the 2014/15 term, McGregor was valued at just €750k (£628k) and he has since gone on to become club captain and played 475 competitive matches for the Bhoys.
At the time of writing (15/10/2024), Transfermarkt has his current market value at a whopping €8.5m (£7.1m), which shows that his value has soared throughout his time with the Hoops.
Market Movers
Football FanCast's Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club's star player or biggest flop worth today?
Celtic have hit the jackpot with the midfield maestro, given that he has emerged as the club’s captain and racked up almost 500 appearances after coming through the academy.
His performances so far this season have been so good, in fact, that FBRef lists Declan Rice as one of the most similar players to him in the Champions League.
Callum McGregor's form this season
In two outings in Europe, McGregor has completed 95% of his attempted passes and made 3.5 tackles and interceptions per game for the Hoops.
Meanwhile, Rice, who joined the Gunners for a fee of £105m from West Ham in 2023, has completed 92% of his passes and made 3.5 tackles and interceptions per match across two games in the Champions League.
This shows that both players have been incredibly efficient in their use of the ball whilst also being combative with their defensive work in the middle of the park.
Appearances
7
Goals
4
Assists
1
Pass accuracy
93%
Dribbles completed per game
1.1
As you can see in the table above, McGregor has enjoyed a stunning start to the 2024/25 campaign with a return of five goals and assists in seven appearances in the Scottish Premiership.
The 31-year-old, who was described as “amazing” by Rodgers, is not showing any sign of aging and remains one of the top players in the squad, as shown by his performances this season and his similarities to a £105m talent in Rice.
Celtic have struck gold with the Scottish maestro and Rodgers will be hoping that his strong form so far this term continues throughout the rest of the season.
Imagine him & Engels: Celtic told they should "definitely" target SPFL star
The Scottish champions have been urged to look at the Scotland U21 international.
ByDan EmeryOct 13, 2024