Celtic to be tested with new bid expected after £10m injection as ex-Parkhead ace linked to shock switch

Engels, 22, has been the source of huge interest over the summer transfer window, with manager Martin O’Neill admitting last week that West Ham United had made an official bid for the player, though it fell short of the club’s valuation of the Belgium international, which is thought to be around £25million.

“I think there's definitely truth in that,” admitted O’Neill on the bid for Engels. “I think there's been something put in that hasn't remotely made our valuation for a start. The same with Alistair Johnston; Everton have been in contact. And I'm not sure whether there's been a bid in there for that one, but they've been in contact saying that they would be.”

Sign up to The Scotsman’s daily football newsletter to get unrivalled Scottish football news and analysis - subscribe for free here.

Subject of several failed bids from Nottingham Forest on deadline day in February, the Europa League semi-finalists offered Celtic an initial fee of around £22million to tempt him across the border. However, with manager O’Neill insisting the club keep hold of him as they chased a fifth successive title, interested parties were made aware he wasn’t for sale at that late stage in the window.

Linked to Red Bull Leipzig, Sunderland and Bologna earlier in the window, clubs have been monitoring Engels’ situation in recent weeks. It was Nuno Espirito Santo’s side who launched the first official bid last week, which was rejected. However, the £10million sale of West Ham academy product Freddie Potts to Belgian outfit Club Brugge this week has now unlocked further funds, and reports claim the recently relegated EFL Championship side are prepared to use it to fund their bid to sign Engels.

The Hammers boss is aiming to make an immediate return to the English Premier League this season, and has undergone a massive squad overhaul this summer, with the likes of Mateus Fernandes, Crysencio Summerville and Callum Wilson all exiting the London Stadium in recent weeks. However, Keiber Lamadrid has been the club’s only major incoming.

Speaking after their 1-0 win over Dundee on Monday, O’Neill confirmed that Engels had not requested a move and was honest in his assessment that he hoped to keep hold of him and teammate Johnston until at least the Champions League qualifying clash against LASK next week.

The 74-year-old manager said: “There have been offers put in and I’m not wildly surprised to be honest. They want to play and that’s the most important thing. Ideally that would be brilliant [keeping them for the Champions League qualifiers], that would be really good. We wouldn’t know if the other clubs would want to pursue that, if that was the case.”

Elsewhere, former Celtic title winner Olivier Ntcham could be set for a shock return to Marseille after leaving Turkish top-flight outfit Samsunspor following the expiry of his contract in June. The 30-year-old spent four seasons at Parkhead between 2017 and 2021, joining from Manchester City in a deal worth around £4.5million.

Winning eight trophies during his time in the east end of Glasgow, the Cameroon international has appeared for Swansea City and Samsunspor, but had a short and unsuccessful loan spell at Marseille in 2021, while still on the books of Celtic. Arriving at the club until the end of the campaign in January, reports indicated that then-head coach Andre Villas-Boas had offered his resignation after Ntcham was signed against his wishes. The Portuguese manager was suspended shortly afterwards after publicly criticising the club's board.

However, just five years on from the infamous signing that caused the major fallout between Villas-Boas and the Marseille board, the French giants are reportedly interested in signing him as a free agent.