The Hoops playmaker survived his Bundesliga debut at the Westfalenstadion as a kid with Augsburg and is looking forward to returning.
Some of the best in the business have been left bricking it after facing up to the Yellow Wall. But Borussia Dortmund’s famous terrace won’t cause Celtic ace Arne Engels to crumble.
The Hoops star is relishing another crack at the renowned Westfalenstadion after surviving his Augsburg debut at the intimidating arena as a teenager. It’s an environment that has left plenty shaking, with even Germany and Bayern Munich great Bastian Schweinsteiger once admitting he feared the Yellow Wall more than the Dortmund team.
Engels shrugged it off in his first experience though. The 21-year-old strolled out from the claustrophobic tunnel in front of more than 81,000 fans – with 25,000 of them packed into the notorious south section behind the goal. It was a day to remember as his Augsburg side went toe-to-toe with the Bundesliga big guns and gave them a huge scare in a seven goal thriller.
So there’s nothing that will scare him this time around when he prepares to step up with Celts in the Champions League next week. The Belgian playmaker will fill in his Parkhead teammates but his big message will be not to be overawed by the Yellow Wall – because Celtic Park is even louder.
Engels said: “I made my debut for Augsburg there in Dortmund. It was directly in front of 80,000 people. It was crazy. But it did bring the best out of me. It’s the same here. It’s the same noise, even louder sometimes. It’s going to be really good and helpful for me.
“Yeah, the atmosphere can be intimidating, but it’s also intimidating here. It’s also nice to play here. You have the fans with you and not against you. That’s also a different feeling and a really nice feeling.
Engels almost caused an almighty shock on his debut against Dortmund and is out of complete one on Tuesday as Celts bid to build on their spectacular start to the Champions League against Slovan Bratislava. He said: “It was a 4-3 defeat. It was a crazy game. Every time 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, 2-3. It was amazing to play and I was just 19. Also, I grabbed an assist so it was a perfect night for me.
“It was a hell of a game in Dortmund. Augsburg were already a long time in the Bundesliga. They were in the middle table or a bit below. So it’s obvious that Dortmund was expected to win easily, but it wasn’t like that. So it was a good game.”
Engels has had a few good games for Celtic already. He impressed from the bench in the win against Rangers and then again in his first start in the victory over Hearts. But it was against Bratislava where the Belgian international really proved his Champions League credentials.
Engels was outstanding in the 5-1 battering, controlling the midfield and supplying a wicked ball for Liam Scales’s opener before slotting in from the spot himself. The £11m record signing looked good value for money and he’ll be every bit as important as the Hoops look to kick on and upset the odds in Germany next week.
Engels can also play a part off the field in this campaign. The youngster will have the inside track on Dortmund and RB Leipzig from his time in the Bundesliga. Celts are also up against Club Brugge – where he came through as a kid under now Rangers boss Philippe Clement.
Engels said: “Hopefully I can help. There are also a lot of Belgian guys that are playing in all the clubs that we are playing against. It’s also nice to see them again. It will be really nice to play against my old team and also see everybody. We’ll see how it goes.
It’s been so far, so good. But Engels is well aware the difficulty levels are about to be ramped up in Europe. Dortmund – who lost to Real Madrid in last season’s Final – could be the toughest one of the lot but it’s Serie A Atalanta next before Leipzig head to Scotland.
Those three points bagged against Bratislava were crucial and if Celts can picked up a couple more in the next three matches, they will be in superb shape for a crack at the knockout stages with Brugge and Young Boys Bern due in Glasgow as well as the trip to face Dinamo Zagreb before Christmas, with the Croatians already a manager down in the wake of their 9-2 mauling by Bayern.
Engels is optimistic – but is not getting ahead of himself. He said: “It’s going to be obviously a hard challenge. It’s like every game in the Champions League, it’s at the highest level.
They’re all good teams, but we are also a good team. I think we don’t need to be scared of anybody. We just need to play our own game and see how it goes. Obviously, they’re good teams.”
Engels won’t shy away from the challenge though and he’s slotted into the Celtic dressing room like he’s been part of it for years. It’s a melting pot of nationalities in there – but it won’t be an issue for a young lad who is a whiz at languages while also doing his talking on the pitch.
He said: “Fluent? I don’t know. But I can speak Dutch, French, English and also a bit of German. But German is more understanding than really speaking.
“The Scottish accent is quite okay actually! Sometimes it’s a bit difficult, but I will get used to it, I think. It’s nice actually.
