Celtic midfielder Arne Engels admits he grew frustrated with his lack of minutes under Brendan Rodgers this season, but credits his teamma...
Celtic midfielder Arne Engels admits he grew frustrated with his lack of minutes under Brendan Rodgers this season, but credits his teammates for keeping him calm and helping him get back on track.
The Belgian midfielder started just six of Celtic's opening 16 matches before Rodgers' contentious exit, leading fans and pundits to question his long-term future at the club despite a record £11m transfer fee paid to Augsburg for his services in 2024.
"It's always frustrating as a player to be on the bench," Engels reflected. "Especially, I'm maybe the one who is really working hard and trying to be back in the team. If you don't really get a big chance to be back in the team and to show what you actually can contribute to the team, then it's always frustrating."
"Obviously, you go and ask why you're not playing," Engels explained. "If you played a lot of important games last season, then you're going to go up to the manager and then ask for the reasons.
"We spoke about it, and we had really good chats. He gave his clear opinion, and it was up to me to just get on with it and work hard for myself and work hard for the team.
"It was just about small details. Every manager has their own way of thinking and their own way of putting the players on the pitch. Sometimes you're not in that plan, and then you need to deal with it and just work hard to become part of that plan. That's what I did. I worked really hard behind the scenes, and I also got my opportunities."
A guiding force throughout this spell was his teammate and captain, Callum McGregor. He ensured Engels kept his head and his focus despite frustrations.
Engels said, "He has helped me a lot, also off the pitch. I spoke to him when I wasn't in the team. I asked him how to come back into the team. What do I need to do? What is your view of seeing everything? He just gave his opinion about it, and that helped me a lot to be calm and just work on it.
"We find each other really well on the pitch, and you see that every time in the games that we play together that we really work with each other and help each other in every way. Even though sometimes I need a man to cover a metre or something, he will do it, and I will do the same for him."
Having subsequently started eight of the nine fixtures since Rodgers' departure, Engels has again established himself as a go-to option, even if there's still a feeling that he has another level to reach. Unlocking that potential is one of the challenges awaiting Wilfried Nancy in the coming weeks and months.
Part of that process will involve the midfielder becoming more of an attacking threat. He scored his first goal in open play since February against Hibernian recently and should have netted another header on Sunday at home to Hearts.
Engels averages just shy of four touches in the opposition box per game in the Premiership this season, which, as an example of the standard, is roughly half of what Matt O'Riley averaged at the club on his way to becoming a consistent goalscoring weapon from midfield. It’s an area of development that was highlighted to him long before Nancy’s arrival.
"Shaun [Maloney] and the backroom staff had been talking to me about arriving in the box. I'm always trying to be there and always trying to get a goal from somewhere," Engels said. "Gavin [Strachan] has also been telling me since last year that I just need to keep on doing it because I'm coming there, but sometimes the ball is not arriving. You need to have a little bit of luck also to get into the right position and to get a goal."
With the expectations attached to his transfer fee and Celtic’s demands in general, further criticism outside of the Lennoxtown bubble is inevitable. Engels insists he is the only person who can ultimately silence the doubters.
He said, "I'm not really a guy that is going on every social media to see every post about the £11million, like they always say. I just need to deal with it. Sometimes it's maybe not fair, but it is what it is. You need to go on with it and you need to work more.
"I think every player feels the same pressure here. It's always going to be winning games and always going to be performing every game. Even though you had a fantastic game on Wednesday, you need to be back on Saturday or Sunday to be even better. You can have a really good game, but then if you have a worse game, then they're going to speak about it, that you're not really performing well.
"It can change really fast. So it's up to us to keep on bringing good performances, and then they have nothing to say, only positive things."
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