Celtic to regret West Ham transfer - it's 'like when they lost Van Dijk' | OneFootball

FLW's West Ham fan pundit believes Celtic will come to regret the sale of Arne Engels to the Hammers this summer

West Ham United's slow start to life in the Championship has been well and truly forgotten after their recent string of results, as the Hammers have looked to make a statement of intent to the rest of the division both on and off the pitch.

A draw at Burnley on the opening day, followed by a loss at home to Charlton Athletic and a draw away to Watford, raised some warning flags around West Ham following their relegation from the Premier League.

A slow start to the summer window would have also raised questions, but now, things look to have clicked for the Hammers.

An excellent end to the transfer window, as well as four wins in their last four games, scoring 16 goals over that period, has shot the club towards the summit of the table, and those efforts almost certainly wouldn't have been possible without one summer signing.

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For a long stretch of the summer, Keiber Lamadrid's loan move turned into a permanent was West Ham's only addition, as head coach Nuno Espírito Santo, alongside incoming director of player recruitment, Nils Koppen, weighed up options in the market.

The likes of Joel Piroe, Edvin Austbo, Manor Solomon, Joel Veltman, Divine Mukasa, Morato, and Adama Boiro would all eventually join the club, but it would be Arne Engels' £22 million move from Scottish side Celtic that would take most of the headlines.

The Belgian midfielder's move to the English capital broke the EFL transfer record, as Nuno looked to find a new midfield dictator to guide his side back to the Premier League, and though it is early days, the signs look promising for the Hammers.

West Ham United fan pundit drops 'hot take' as Virgil van Dijk comparisons drawn to Arne Engels following Celtic switch

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Football League World's West Ham fan pundit, Ryan Horn, has shared their opinion on whether they think Celtic will regret the sale of Engels to the Hammers, and has drawn comparisons to a certain Dutch defender.

Ryan said: "100%. He's just so good.

"I think it'll be like when they lost Van Dijk to Southampton. Maybe a bit of a hot take, but yeah, it's going to be that sort of feeling.

"I think Engels will go on to be and do great things, and helping us get back to the Premier League is one of them, definitely."

Virgil van Dijk has certainly gone on to have an excellent career following his Celtic exit, with the 35-year-old having gone on to make just shy of 400 appearances for the Reds after 80 for Southampton across all competitions.

His £75 million switch to Merseyside in January 2018 broke the world record fee for a defender at the time, as Engels, whilst he has bags of ability, faces an almighty task to come close to following in the footsteps of the Dutch centre-back.

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Any player who breaks a transfer record will arrive with some degree of expectation to make an immediate positive impact, including Engels, and it's so far, so good for the 23-year-old.

With two assists in his first six Championship games, Engels looks every bit the player West Ham paid £22 million to bring to the English second tier, and if he can maintain that standard of performance throughout the campaign, then they could have a real gem on their hands.

Still 23, Engels has ample time to continue to improve his game and iron out areas of weakness, though whether Celtic will come to regret his sale as they would have with Van Dijk, remains to be seen.