Quotes attributed to Martin O’Neill over the weekend will have done little to placate Celtic fans’ concerns about this summer’s transfer window activity – or lack of it.
Colombian striker Camilo Duran, bought from Azerbaijan club Qarabag, is the Scottish champions’ only addition so far despite the veteran Northern Irishman looking to reshape his squad after nearly losing the league title to Heart of Midlothian last season.
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And O’Neill was quoted as saying he has resigned himself to selling Arne Engels and Daizen Maeda – and plans talks with Callum McGregor about his future with his captain having reportedly signed up to a new agency.
Here, BBC Scotland looks at the value and importance of each player and what losing them may mean for O’Neill and the Glasgow club.
Impressive stats, numerous medals
Engels arrived in the summer window of 2024 from Bundesliga club Augsburg. Though not like for like, the midfielder was ostensibly a replacement for Denmark international Matt O’Riley, who was sold to Brighton & Hove Albion after scoring 19 goals in 49 appearances the previous season.
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The 22-year-old, capped four times for Belgium, is yet to hit those kind of numbers for Celtic, but neither did O’Riley until the 2023-24 campaign, having joined in early 2022.
Ten goals in 2024-25 and seven last term demonstrated that Engels could be a regular scorer from midfield.
Indeed, his two most recent goals were in trophy-clinching wins over Heart of Midlothian in the final-day Scottish Premiership showdown and the Scottish Cup final victory over Dunfermline Athletic.
Add to that his record of assists, eight last season alone, and he more than contributes to Celtic’s recent success.
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Forward Maeda certainly peaked in season 2024-25, scoring 33 goals in 51, but he has been in double figures in his three other full seasons at Celtic, including 17 goals in 2025-26, and netted eight in the second half of the 2021-22 campaign.
His 38 assists have also gone a long way to earning the 10 pieces of silverware, including five league titles, during his time with Celtic.
Meanwhile, there is no questioning the importance of McGregor given he is one of Celtic’s most decorated players and captains with 26 honours, including 11 league wins.
The former Scotland midfielder has contributed 77 goals in 576 Celtic appearances and provided 84 assists since his breakthrough in 2014.
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Intangible qualities, attractive options
Of course, it’s not just appearances, goals and assists that count.
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While McGregor, at the age of 33, is in the twilight of his career, his experience and leadership skills would be difficult to replace.
Still only 28, Maeda not only has World Cup experience with Japan but perhaps still has his best days ahead of him – and the same could be said of the even more youthful Engels.
Former Celtic manager Ange Postecoglu waxed lyrical during this summer’s finals about the “world-class” closing down abilities that have made Maeda such a valuable asset, while McGregor has long been the heartbeat of the team, taking on more of that responsibility since replacing Scott Brown as captain in 2021.
All of which makes the both players attractive to potential suitors, as does Engels’ talent and potential for growth.
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A possible 2025 move to Wolfsburg for Maeda failed to materialise, while Engels was the subject of interest from Nottingham Forest last term.
Their subsequent drop off in early season form was put down by some to the disappointment of seeing those moves collapse, but both finished it strongly, although not enough to clinch Engels a place in Belgium’s World Cup squad.
Speculation around McGregor’s future is not new, given he has been a top performer at Celtic for 12 years.
He showed his loyalty to the club when giving up his international career to maintain his Celtic form.
However, in April he warned that he was happy to finish his career at Celtic only if they “continue to push and want to be successful”.
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That was before their late push under O’Neill snatched the title out of Hearts’ hands, but at his age, McGregor has potentially one big move in him despite, like Engels, being contracted until 2028.
Maeda only has one year left on his contract so, as things stand, Celtic have just two transfer windows to cash in.
Arne Engels and Daizen Maeda showed their worth as Celtic completed a domestic double last season [SNS]
What is manager O’Neill saying?
Celtic begin their season by opening the defence of their Premiership title at home to Dundee on 3 August.
A trip to Kilmarnock follows six days later, then comes a League Cup tie on the weekend of 15/16 August.
After that, it is potentially Celtic’s biggest games of the season in the Champions League play-off round on 18/19 and 25/26 August, with another league game in between.
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The opponent for that tie is as yet unknown, but Celtic will be seeded and are seeking to avoid a repeat of their defeat on penalties by Kairat at the same stage of the competition last season.
After formalising an extended stay for the coming season after two spells as interim boss last term, O’Neill told Celtic TV he was trying to “augment the squad”.
Since then, the club have signed Duran, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has followed James Forrest, Luke McCowan and Liam Scales in agreeing a new contract.
And O’Neill has hinted at how he wants Celtic to play in season 2026-27.
“When we have possession of the ball, it’s great to keep it and absolutely right, but I’d like us to keep it for a purpose,” he explained.
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Coy as ever, it’s difficult to read too much into what O’Neill is getting without seeing Celtic in action.
However, losing Engels and/or McGregor would leave a big hole to fill in midfield, while an exit for Maeda would create a significant headache in attack given his versatility on the wings and through the middle.
McGregor speculation ‘unlikely to disappear’
Rumours surrounding the future of Celtic captain McGregor have been circulating since the beginning of the year.
This was also the time when the club were in disarray, with Wilfred Nancy’s short reign in the dugout preceding O’Neill’s second return as manager.
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At 33 with close to 600 appearances for the club, the midfielder owes Celtic nothing. He took on the mantle of captain after Brown’s departure and has led by example ever since.
It comes as no surprise former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers may be keen to take the former Scotland player to Saudi Arabia, given the influence McGregor had during both of Rodgers’ spells in Glasgow.
With two years remaining on his contract, Celtic are in a relatively comfortable position and know that, if there is an approach and McGregor wants to leave, they will be heavily compensated for the loss of their skipper.
Reports of McGregor recently switching to the same agency that represents Rodgers may be purely coincidental but would seem enough for manager O’Neill to ask the midfielder whether there is any truth to the speculation linking him with a move.
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O’Neill and the Celtic support will be hoping the answer is no, but until then, the speculation is unlikely to disappear.
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