Celtic are interested in Soufiane El-Faouzi, according to a report.
The midfielder has just secured promotion to the Bundesliga with Schalke, for whom he has been a mainstay this season.
Despite uncertainty over the identity of Celtic’s next permanent manager, they have been linked with plenty of players in recent weeks as the summer transfer window draws closer.
But they aren’t alone in admiring El-Faouzi, who is also reportedly being chased by Premier League clubs.
You have been given £10m to sign one player for Celtic in the summer transfer window…
Which player are you spending that money on?
Celtic and Premier League clubs want Soufiane El-Faouzi, Schalke keen to hold on
According to Sky Germany, Celtic are among the clubs interested in El-Faouzi, with Brentford, Bologna and Sunderland.
Stade Rennais seem to be out of the race. He reportedly has concrete enquiries from England, Italy and Germany.
READ MORE: Chris Sutton calls it as Rangers collapse sends Celtic four clear of Ibrox club
At 22 years old, El-Faouzi wouldn’t come cheap. The report lists his price tag as €12 million, or £10.3 million.
He has started all 32 of Schalke’s games in the 2. Bundesliga this season, operating in a box-to-box role in their midfield.
He and his friends supported Schalke growing up, and he has described them as his “hometown club”. The report says that it remains possible that he stays at the club this summer.
Their promotion is doubtless a factor in this. The Gelsenkirchen giants have spent three years away from the German top-flight.
On paper, El-Faouzi would make sense as a replacement for Arne Engels, who could leave Glasgow this summer. The Belgian was brought to the Hoops from German side FC Augsburg.
At £11 million, Engels was the club’s record transfer when signed in 2024. The club are expected to turn a profit if he is sold this summer.
Celtic currently have two players on loan in the German second tier in Maik Nawrocki and Shin Yamada. The latter scored against the former’s club last weekend.
Pick one player to sell for ‘£20m’ this summer. Engels or Nygren?
Who you picking and why, Celtic fans…
Martin O’Neill on mammoth Celtic rebuild
Discussing the club’s upcoming rebuild recently, Martin O’Neill said: “We will have to try and act relatively quickly on players.
“On the larger picture, yeah, I’m looking at this minute at players, but it is strange, because I’m more focused on the matches here.
“So, if you’ve got a spare hour, the scouts are in there, they’re looking at a lot of things, which they should be doing anyway.
“This is the point. Let’s say somebody steps in during the first week of June or something, then [the scouts] should be able to put a lot of this forward to him and say, ‘This is what we’re doing, this is the general consensus that these players are really good’.
“And then it’s up to him to have a look at these players and see.”
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