West Ham United’s £22million move for Arne Engels has received further validation from Celtic manager Martin O’Neill.
Engels left Celtic for the Hammers during the summer after West Ham made the Belgium international their biggest statement signing of the Championship rebuild.
Celtic have now admitted they have struggled to replace an important part of what Engels provided.
O’Neill admits Celtic miss Engels
Speaking about Celtic’s midfield problems, O’Neill admitted the Scottish champions had looked for a like-for-like replacement after knowing Engels was likely to leave.
As reported by Yahoo Sports, O’Neill said Engels had been “a loss” because of the running power he offered.
Celtic’s attempts to find a replacement ultimately failed.
That admission provides further context around why West Ham were prepared to spend £22m to secure the 23-year-old.
The Hammers officially completed the Engels signing after a lengthy summer pursuit.
Engels becoming key for West Ham
Engels has already grown into an important part of Nuno Espírito Santo’s midfield.
We recently looked at how Engels silenced early doubts to become central to West Ham’s promotion push.
His creativity has also become increasingly important, with his set-piece delivery giving West Ham another attacking weapon.
Celtic’s difficulty replacing that combination of energy and technical quality only strengthens the case for why West Ham pushed so hard to get the deal done.
