O'Neill Braces Celtic for Champions League With Quiet Transfer Window
Celtic manager Martin O'Neill does not expect any new signings before Wednesday's Champions League play-off first leg at home to LASK, leaving the squad to face a pivotal European night as it stands.
The transfer deadline falls on Tuesday, and O'Neill has described the likelihood of fresh arrivals as slim. "There's a fairly decent chance of nothing happening," he said, according to BBC Sport. That means Celtic go into the first leg of their play-off — the round that decides whether a club reaches the Champions League group stage, the lucrative league phase of European football's premier competition — with the players already in the building.
One of those players who left the building is Arne Engels, sold to West Ham at the weekend. O'Neill acknowledged that replacing Engels' running power in midfield will be difficult and said the search for a successor is still ongoing, though time is running out.
The midfield picture is further complicated by availability. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is suspended for the LASK match, and Reo Hatate has yet to feature this season, sitting as an unused substitute across Celtic's opening fixtures. Hatate, 28, joined Celtic in 2022 and has two years remaining on his contract. He has not started a game since a 2-0 defeat at Dundee United in April. His record at the club — five league titles, three Scottish Cups, and two League Cups — is that of a proven winner, but his current absence from the starting eleven raises obvious questions about his future.
O'Neill addressed those directly. He said he would be happy for Hatate to stay, confirmed there have been transfer enquiries for the Japanese midfielder, but described nothing as definitive. The door is ajar in both directions; nobody has walked through it.
One player who may step through into the starting lineup is Mika Baur. The summer signing made his Celtic debut as a 59th-minute substitute in Sunday's 4-0 win at Dundee United, and O'Neill suggested Baur could start against LASK given the absences of Oxlade-Chamberlain and Hatate. The manager believes Baur and fellow new arrival Haissem Hassan have "good talent" and will do "really well" given time, though Baur is understood to be closer to full fitness than Hassan, who may need longer to make his mark Celtic FC.
O'Neill has only recently returned to the dugout. He underwent a minor operation on August 5 and missed a Premiership victory over Kilmarnock before rejoining the touchline for the League Cup win at Tannadice. Appointed permanent manager in June after guiding Celtic to a Premiership and Scottish Cup double, he has been back at work for less than a fortnight.
There is also outgoing business to manage. Forward Michel-Ange Balikwisha is poised to leave the club, with Monza and Basel among three sides interested, as reported on August 15 BBC Sport.
For Celtic fans, the picture is one of a club standing pat. The Champions League play-off is the kind of occasion that defines a season, and O'Neill is prepared to meet it with the squad he has, gaps and all.
