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I'll be accused of Celtic doom mongering amid Rangers hilarity but Arne Engels move is just dumb – Chris Sutton Sutty still has major concerns ahead of crucial Champions League showdown with LASK as Hoops cockiness over Gers woe makes him wary Celtic fans are having a proper chuckle at the nightmare start to the season at Rangers under Derek McInnes. But they should realise next week’s Champions League play-off is no laughing matter – especially after cashing in on Arne Engels before the clash with LASK. After a summer of discontent, the mood has lifted at Parkhead with a few new signings and a couple of decent results. Chuck in the fact rivals Rangers seem to be in a state of disarray and it’s all sweetness and light in the East End of Glasgow. I know I’ll get accused of being a doom monger – again – but I still have concerns about this European tie. And I can’t for the life of me work out why Celtic are allowing one of their best players to leave on the eve of one of the biggest games of the season. It's just DUMB. There’s so much on the line, it’s unthinkable to go in to this match in a weaker position – but that’s what is going to happen with Engels gone. I get that it’s big money and I understand why West Ham want him now, with the Championship kicking off this weekend. But that’s not Celtic’s problem. They had to look after themselves. You only have to look at Engels’ display at Rugby Park at the weekend to see what he brings to Martin O’Neill’s team. He has an energy and drive that is hard to replace, he covers the entire pitch and brings some physicality they need. I know Mika Baur has come in but he is a different profile. He’s not the biggest and is more of a technical player. It’s also a big ask to throw him straight into the team for such an enormous encounter, even if he does manage to get some game time against Dundee United today. Baur played in a deeper role as well, so that might mean Callum McGregor moves further up. Making such a big change at this stage is a risky business. Likewise with the recruitment. Celtic fans are thrilled to see players with pedigree such as Baur and Haissem Hassan land – but it would have helped to have had them in a bit earlier. I get that it’s not always easy to bring in quality early – and we can see how the flip side works at Rangers when you go for quantity. But everything should have been geared up for this tie. It’s not going to be a formality. LASK might not be the biggest name in European football and some people reckon Austria is more famous for skiing than football. But they finished champions – above the likes of RB Salzburg, who have spent a few quid in recent years. They will be far from pushovers and with Alistair Johnston out, Celtic will need as many trusted campaigners as possible. I’m not being negative because there are positives. Celtic were very impressive against Kilmarnock last weekend. You have to bear in mind the kamikaze display from Killie, but there was a real cutting edge about Celtic and Kasper Hogh getting off the mark was a major boost. I like what I’ve seen from him so far. It’s not a surprise as he scored one in two for Bodo/Glimt and he’s proved himself against good teams in Europe. It’s always important, though, to get off to a good start and a hat-trick in his second game will do wonders for his confidence. I liked the simplicity of his finishes and I say that not because they were simple goals – just that he made them look easy. You can see his intelligence with his movement. Okay, Kilmarnock didn’t help themselves, but he could see the gaps and knew where to be at precisely the right time. He looks more than capable of scoring a lot of goals if Celtic resist the temptation to have him dropping deep. Camilo Duran has also been encouraging. He’s playing out of position but it worked very well at Rugby Park. He was helped by the fact Johnston could go beyond him in that first half an allow him to tuck in narrow and cut inside, where he was unfortunate with a couple of chances. It will be interesting to see how O’Neill utilises him now Hassan is on board. The Egyptian is an exciting signing. It was encouraging to learn Celtic had been tracking him since before the World Cup, so it suggests they are not just jumping on the back of a couple of displays in America. It’s funny, I was at Egypt’s knockout win against Australia and I do remember being impressed by him when he came off the bench and made a difference. We all know about his performance against Argentina but the task for him is now to produce it on a regular basis. Some people have battered Hassan for his stats when it comes to goals and assists but it’s a bit unfair when he’s been playing with a team struggling at the bottom of La Liga. He’ll get more attacking opportunities with Celtic and with someone like Hogh in the box, you would expect those numbers to rocket. Time will tell but Celtic still need more. Baur looks more like a replacement for Reo Hatate and if the Engels deal goes through, the midfield will be light again. The good thing about the signings so far is they are not the finished articles but they are not development players either. They have a level of experience and pedigree and that will be needed for the Engels replacement. But if Celtic had held firm and kept the Belgian for the play-off they really would have been laughing.