Celtic star's memorable week continues as £11m ace given Belgium seal of approval

Celtic’s Arne Engels continued his unforgettable week by making his international debut in Belgium’s 3-1 victory over Israel in the Nations League last night.

Playing the final 17 minutes of the victory, his appearance off the bench tops off a stunning week for the young Belgian, who made his Hoops debut in last Sunday’s 3-0 win over neighbours Rangers just two days after completing his record £11million switch from Bundesliga side Augsburg.

Engels, who has represented Belgium at every youth age group and is a prominent feature for their under-21 squad, received his first call up to the senior squad just hours after completing his megabucks move to Celtic Park last week and has been tipped for a massive future in his homeland.

Celtic new boy Arne Engels trains alongside Julien Duranville, Amadou Onana and Kevin De Bruyne earlier this week. Cr: Getty Images. | BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images

The youngster will compete with the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Amadou Onana for a midfield berth but believes he can add to Domenico Tedesco’s squad. “I am a player who can bring energy and will to win,” said Engels following his senior call-up last week. “I am a real winner every day, even during mutual games in training. In addition, I have a nice passing and a good kicking technique, which can be useful in set pieces, if necessary. I am also very versatile: I pull my weight everywhere, but I prefer to play in midfield. I am mainly here to learn. I want to deliver quality and show that I am worth being here.”

Replacing Youri Tielemans in the 73rd minute, the 20-year-old midfielder could to feature again against France on Monday, with Belgium head coach Tedesco admitting he sees a big future for Engels.

“We have been following Arne for a long time,” the Belgium boss admitted last week. “He was there in our training camp just before the European Championship and he impressed in training. He has enormous potential and we want to give him the opportunity to show what he can do. There is more room for younger players in the squad now. In the coming six months we have the chance to test these new faces.”