West Ham push for Arne Engels as Celtic eye club-record fee

CELTIC are closing in on what could be a club-record sale, with West Ham stepping up negotiations for midfielder Arne Engels. The 22-year-old Belgium international has been linked with a Parkhead exit for some time. Celtic already turned down a lucrative January bid from Nottingham Forest, and while Forest have not gone away, their focus has shifted elsewhere. West Ham, however, are now moving quickly, and media reports that talks are intensifying as the Scottish Premiership champions prepare to start the defence of their title. Engels has changed agents this summer in an effort to force through a move. Celtic have been braced for interest ever since he arrived from Augsburg, and there is no shortage of suitors. Sunderland and Fulham have been credited with Premier League interest, while Lazio, Milan, Napoli and Borussia Dortmund have also been linked. Celtic are hoping the situation can produce a record fee. Engels has two years left on his contract and an Estimated Transfer Value of £12.3m (€14.4m), but the club's sights are set higher. They want to beat the £25m (€29.5m) they received from Brighton for Matt O'Riley - the deal that initially led Celtic to sign Engels. Nottingham Forest had a £25m offer rejected, giving a clear indication of the benchmark set by the Celtic board. The midfielder contributed seven goals and eight assists last season. Selling Engels would force Celtic into the market for a replacement. Their summer business has been slow, but the forward line has been addressed with the arrivals of Kasper Hogh from Bodo/Glimt and Camilo Duran from Qarabag, who are seen as direct replacements for Daizen Maeda and Kelechi Iheanacho. With a home league game against Dundee on Monday and Champions League qualifiers on the horizon, the club need momentum - and an Engels departure could be the trigger. Torino's Gvidas Gineitis and Brondby's Benjamin Tahirovic have both been mentioned as possible options to fill the gap.