Celtic wrapped up a busy deadline day by bringing in three loan signings whilst successfully fending off persistent interest from Nottingham Forest for midfielder Arne Engels, and they could now sign free agent Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
The Scottish champions landed 24-year-old Austrian striker Junior Adamu from Bundesliga outfit Freiburg, 20-year-old Brentford centre-half Benjamin Arthur, and 23-year-old Lorient winger Joel Mvuka on temporary deals until the end of the season before Monday’s 11pm cut-off.
All three arrivals came on deadline day itself as boss Martin O’Neill looked to strengthen his squad for the run-in.
Celtic currently sit second in the Scottish Premiership table, above title rivals Rangers, and locked in a fierce title race with the Gers and table-topping Hearts whilst also competing in both the Scottish Cup and Europa League.
The Hoops have been busy adding attacking reinforcements throughout January but spent much of deadline day dealing with unwanted attention from England.
Forest launched three separate bids for Belgian midfielder Engels during the final hours of the transfer window. Their opening bid worth £14 million was promptly rejected, followed by an improved £17.3 million proposal that Celtic also turned down flat.
The Premier League strugglers returned with one final attempt worth up to £25 million, a guaranteed £20 million plus £5 million in add-on, representing a significant profit on the £11 million Celtic paid Augsburg for Engels just 18 months ago.
That massive sum would’ve represented genuinely huge money for Scottish football, making it an incredibly difficult decision for the Celtic board to reject outright.
O’Neill admitted the financial package was “really tempting” and praised the board’s resolve in standing firm despite the late-stage pressure.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday night’s trip to Aberdeen, O’Neill revealed he had absolutely no involvement whatsoever in the decision-making process surrounding Engels’ future.
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The Celtic manager explained the board turned down Forest’s advances before even consulting him about the situation. He only learned about the initial Sunday bid after being asked questions following Celtic’s 2-0 victory over Falkirk.
Separately, O’Neill confirmed direct conversations with unemployed midfielder Oxlade-Chamberlain about potentially moving to Glasgow, with the ex-Arsenal star currently training at his former club.
Jesse Lingard and other illustrious free agents are available for Celtic too, but it is the Ox who has attracted O’Neill’s full attention.
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The 32-year-old veteran departed Turkish club Besiktas last summer and has since been keeping fit by training alongside some of his ex-Arsenal teammates.
O’Neill acknowledged making contact with the England international, who earned 35 caps during his Three Lions career.
Celtic’s boss admitted strong interest in recruiting Oxlade-Chamberlain, but recognised the player probably has numerous options requiring less relocation away from southern England.
However, O’Neill has also said their discussions went very well and suggested Oxlade-Chamberlain is ‘excited’ by the prospect of a Parkhead move, particularly following conversations with ex-teammate Joe Hart about Scotland.
“Spoke to him but I’m sure he’ll have lots of options maybe closer to London as well too,” O’Neill told reporters.
“But he was very affable, I must admit.
“I would be very interested in doing it, but I’m surprised that people haven’t taken him closer to the area and he’s telling me he’s training with Arsenal for quite some considerable time.
“And so in terms of fitness, it’s not match fitness, but it’s fine. We’ll see. And listen, he’s got loads of options.
“I think he was very excited about what we were saying. He knows about the football club. He’s a big friend of Joe Hart and Joe’s spoken to him. Not on our behalf. It was just a conversation with Joe. But listen, it’s fine.”
Whether any deal materialises remains uncertain, though O’Neill clearly wants the experienced midfielder’s presence in his squad.
The versatile former Southampton star would bring vast experience, having made 235 Premier League appearances and 51 cameos in the Champions League.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has also bagged a total of 53 goals and 52 assists over his career.
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