Arne Engels has warned all comers that Celtic are becoming a machine intent on destroying the opposition.
The Belgian produced one of his best performances since his record £11m move to Parkhead as Dundee were battered 6-0 on Wednesday. It moved the Hoops 13 points clear at the top and put to bed any fears that they could be left light in firepower after failing to replace Kyogo in the January window.
Engels, who chipped in with two goals and an assist, insists Brendan Rodgers’ side have a mindset that they want to win everything. And with Bayern Munich set to arrive in Glasgow on Wednesday for the first leg of a blockbuster Champions League last 16 play-off the 21-year-old is confident Rodgers’ team can get even better.
He said: “Yeah, 100 per cent. Every game we are learning and picking things up what we need to improve. We have an amazing squad of people that want to improve every week and every day.
“You see it in our performance, that it’s only getting better and better every time. And that we are trying to make a machine. So, yeah, we are in a good way. The season is not over, so we are trying to improve every game.”
Celtic have smashed in 16 goals in their last four Premiership games to re-establish their 13 point lead over Rangers with 13 league games remaining. Wednesday night was a return to the relentless Hoops as they refused to settle for three or four against a Dundee side that were reeling on the ropes.
Engels’ assist for Daizen Maeda’s goal that made it 4-0 was superb. His 25-yard strike for the fifth, albeit with a nick off a Dark Blue shirt on it’s way past Trevor Carson, was even better. And he said: “I’m always there to grab another goal or something, to have that mindset.
“That’s why I wanted also to come here to Celtic, it’s the mindset of winning and keep on going even it’s 4-0 or something – just to destroy teams. And that’s what I really like from mentality wise here, that everybody has the same mindset and same way of thinking here, and I really love it.
“We are evolving a lot. Also defensive wise, we stepped up a lot in a few months. We are more stable, I think, than in the beginning.
“And that you see also in the in the performance, like against Dundee, we are really sharp in defence and trying to get that zero. Kasper is always talking about it – keeping the clean sheet. So we are also really happy for him to help him with that.”
Raith Rovers are next into the firing line in Saturday’s Scottish Cup fifth round clash before Bayern arrive for the first of two huge Champions League clashes. Vincent Kompany’s Bundesliga leaders have been even more ruthless in their domestic campaign with 62 goals from 20 league games compared to Celtic’s 73 from 25.
It’s set to be a monumental night in the east end of Glasgow. And while the Germans are hit favourites to win over the two legs, Engels has no fear heading into the double header. He said: “I think we can cause every team problems. We showed it already in Champions League, that we can do it against every team. But the next game is in the weekend, so that’s our main focus now.
“We want to win everything, and that’s why we are really good at this season, to keep on doing every game by itself. Not looking forward in the next two weeks or something, just game by game.”