Celtic submit third bid for Engels, raising offer to £10m

Celtic has submitted a third bid for principal transfer target Arne Engels, this time for a record breaking £10m.

AUGSBURG, GERMANY – JANUARY 13: Patrik Schick of Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Arne Engels of FC Augsburg compete for the ball during the Bundesliga match between FC Augsburg and Bayer 04 Leverkusen at WWK-Arena on January 13, 2024 in Augsburg, Germany. (Photo by Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images)

Celtic’s second bid was for £9m – up £3m from the opening bid – and that too was yesterday rejected as Augsburg appeared to have increased their valuation following on from Celtic’s £26m plus add-ons sale of Matt O’Riley to Brighton.

The German side are now reportedly looking from between €13-15m whereas the third Celtic offer is worth €11.8m. Anthony Joseph on Sky Sports reports on the emerging story:

Celtic are accelerating their pursuit of Augsburg midfielder Arne Engels – with their offer now standing at £10m. It is understood the Bundesliga club are still holding out for more, but negotiations continue.

If a deal gets done, it will likely be a record transfer outlay for Celtic. Their current record is £9m to PSG for Odsonne Edouard in 2018. Striker Adam Idah’s move from Norwich to Celtic was an initial fee of £8.5, which could rise to £9.5m.

This deal is very close to being done and it will possibly need just a little increase in the fee for one final push o get this transfer over the line. Celtic have reportedly agreed terms with Engels, who is keen on the move to the Scottish Champions where he will have an opportunity to play in the Champions League.

Augsburg will be under pressure from the player and his advisors to get this deal agreed so that Arne Engels becomes a Celtic player over the next few days, ahead of the transfer window closing on Friday night.

🍀 Celtic have increased their offer for Augsburg midfielder Arne Engels to £10m.

All the Scottish Premiership transfer latest here ⤵️

— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) August 28, 2024

UPDATE: Celtic are accelerating their pursuit of Augsburg midfielder Arne Engels – with their offer now standing at £10m.

Augsburg are still holding out for more, but negotiations continue.

If a deal gets done, it will likely be a record transfer outlay for Celtic. https://t.co/7ENRaJVq9U

— Anthony Joseph (@AnthonyRJoseph) August 28, 2024