Celtic spy late deal for midfielder who’s training at Arsenal right now – top source | OneFootball

Celtic are interested in bringing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Celtic Park as a free agent, according to a reliable source, but Hoops interim-manager Martin O’Neill could face competition from Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

Former Arsenal and Liverpool midfielder Oxlade-Chamberlain is a free agent at the moment. The Englishman’s contract with Besiktas was mutually terminated in August 2025, and he has been without a club since.

Oxlade-Chamberlain has a wealth of experience, having starred for Arsenal and Liverpool in the Premier League, and he is still only 32.

According to Sky Sports, Celtic are ‘interested’ in securing the services of Oxlade-Chamberlain as a free agent.

The Scottish winter transfer window will close at 11pm on Monday, but there is ‘no rush’ for Celtic to get a deal done before then.

That is because Oxlade-Chamberlain is a free agent and could be signed even after the window closes.

However, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has suggested that he could hand Oxlade-Chamberlain a short-term deal.

Oxlade-Chamberlain is currently training with the Arsenal Under-21 side.

Mikel Merino faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to injury, and Arteta said on Monday that he could make Oxlade-Chamberlain part of his first-team squad.

And asked about the possibility of signing Oxlade-Chamberlain, Arteta said, as quoted in The Sun: “We explore every option.”

TEAMtalk’s transfer insider, Graeme Bailey, has reported that Arsenal made an approach to sign Leon Goretzka from Bayern Munich on deadline day, but that did not come to fruition.

With Arsenal looking for a short-term replacement for Merino and not signing any midfielder on deadline day, Oxlade-Chamberlain could become a genuine option for the Gunners, which will be bad news for Celtic.