Celtic’s £20m outlay on Arne Engels and Adam Idah has been a weight that’s been hung around Brendan Rodgers’ neck and both players.
The £11m paid for Engels and £9m for Idah immediately stand out. Both deals pushed Celtic into territory that naturally made fans hold both players to a higher standard.
That scrutiny has not stopped at the fees. It also drifted toward Brendan Rodgers when he was at Celtic, with the suggestion that these were manager-driven decisions.
However, Michael Gannon makes it clear. The issue is not why Celtic spent £20m, but how those deals reached that level.
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Brendan Rodgers is cleared of responsibility for inflated fees
The narrative around Rodgers demanding high-cost signings does not stand up. The final figures attached to Engels and Idah were not driven by the former Celtic manager.
Gannon said: “It’s not Brendan Rodgers who said I want to spend £11m on this guy. Celtic went in with a bid about half of that earlier and then kind of dithered and dallied a bit and the price went up.
“So it got to that value because Celtic weren’t nimble enough to get a deal done sharp enough. As has happened many times now in the last few years. So the £11m, I mean, the same with Adam Idah as well with £9m.
“Those fees weren’t what they would have been if Celtic had been operating in a little bit more nimble fashion. I mean, it wasn’t Brendan Rodgers saying I want to spend £11m. If it has been £5.5m everyone thinking that’s an absolute steal.
“So it’s not his fault they got to that fee, but they’ll make their money back and then some of them, no doubt, but they would have made more if they were a bit sharper in getting him.”
That directly removes responsibility from the manager. The inflated fees are a product of how deals were handled, not who requested the players.
Despite that, the players themselves remained strong investments. Idah is gone but there is confidence that Engels will still return profit in time.
Celtic board delays created the £20m problem
Celtic did not move for Engels at £11m from the outset. The initial bid was far lower, but hesitation allowed the price to climb before the deal was completed.
The same pattern applied to Idah. His £9m fee reflects a negotiation that escalated rather than one secured early.
This has been highlighted as a recurring issue in recent years. Slow execution in the market is turning strong recruitment calls into inflated deals.
The core point is clear. Celtic are identifying the right players, but inefficiency at board level is eroding the value of those decisions.
The squad still holds resale potential, but margins are being lost. Faster action would reduce fees, protect value, and remove misplaced pressure on the manager.
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