Chris Sutton states how Arne Engels faired playing Callum McGregor’s role and replacing Celtic captain long-term

Add as preferred source on Google

Arne Engels is slowly growing into a top player for Celtic.

The 21-year-old moved to Glasgow in the summer for a club-record transfer fee from Augsburg and he had a lot of pressure on his shoulders.

But, fast forward to the present, and Engels is getting stronger by the week, including hitting double figures in goals at the weekend for Celtic.

Engels netted his tenth goal in all competitions when Celtic beat St Mirren 5-2 in Paisley to move 16 points clear at the top of the Premiership table.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	CelticCeltic	29	24	3	2	87	17	70	75
2	RangersRangers	29	18	5	6	59	26	33	59
3	HibernianHibernian	29	11	10	8	44	40	4	43
4	AberdeenAberdeen	29	12	6	11	38	46	-8	42
5	Dundee UtdDundee Utd	29	11	8	10	36	36	0	41
6	MotherwellMotherwell	29	11	4	14	34	48	-14	37

As the months have gone on, Engels has made that starting place his own and Brendan Rodgers has him part of the team’s strongest midfield.

Captain Callum McGregor is the main guy in the middle of the park, alongside Reo Hatate, but the rising Belgian star is ahead of Luke McCowan and Paulo Bernardo.

But, over the weekend, as the champions were putting five past St Mirren, Engels deployed an interesting role that caught the eye of Chris Sutton.

READ MORE: Sky Sports display pretty odd graphic moments before Arne Engels’ penalty for Celtic at St Mirren

Arne Engels plays Callum McGregor’s role as Celtic beat St Mirren

Just after the hour mark, McGregor had to go off injured and it meant Engels dropping deeper and playing that holding role.

With McGregor turning 32 in June, there needs to be a long-term replacement for him sooner rather than later and that was touched upon by Sutton.

The former striker noted how Engels made that role look ‘easy’ when he was asked to drop deep, as he told Sky Sports Football (01/03/25 at 7:15 pm).

“It’s interesting, Engels playing in that McGregor role,” said Sutton. “Eventually, Celtic will need to replace Callum McGregor and he makes that role look easy. He has done okay.”

Engels stats for Celtic against St Mirren

It would be good for Celtic to be pro-active and look for someone to help out McGregor next season, especially with the games piling up due to the revamped Champions League format.

But, so far, Engels has done well settling into life in Glasgow and putting in strong performances, as WhoScored rated his latest display at 7.33.

There’s no doubt that Engels has it all in his locker to play that deeper role, but then you take away his attacking qualities.

You presume it would be better if Celtic dipped into the market for another number six and allowed Engels to roam forward as the number eight.