Celtic's Summer Reinforcements: O’Neill Targets Key Signings
Martin O’Neill expects Celtic’s summer to finally catch fire, with Camilo Duran set to become the club’s first signing of the window and pressure growing for a sizeable rebuild.
Duran, 24, has completed his medical and will arrive from Qarabag for a fee in the region of £6m after an eye-catching 2025-26 campaign in which he scored five Champions League goals. The deal is not just Celtic’s first major move of the summer; it is a signal that the club is at last willing to tap into the market O’Neill has been pushing towards.
Supporters have grown restless. The title defence starts in less than a month. The Champions League qualifiers are looming. Until now, the only concrete piece of business has been keeping a veteran.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who initially joined on a short-term deal in January, has agreed a new one-year contract. His experience and versatility impressed O’Neill in the run-in, but a 30-something midfielder staying on is not the kind of headline that soothes a fanbase demanding fresh energy and investment.
O’Neill knows that. And he did little to hide the scale of the work under way behind the scenes.
“We have a number of players that we’re looking at,” he said. “We’ve had a number of offers in for players as well too at the same time.
“And I’m hoping in the not-too-distant future, and I mean maybe in the next couple of weeks, that we will have some really decent players at the football club to add to the very decent players we have at the football club.”
The message is clear: the dam is about to burst. The question is whether Celtic can move quickly enough, and boldly enough, to keep pace with their own ambitions.
Carter-Vickers back from the brink
Amid the noise about signings and budgets, there was a quieter but significant moment on the pitch.
Cameron Carter-Vickers pulled on a Celtic shirt in a match for the first time since October, playing the opening 45 minutes of a 1-1 draw with Shelbourne, a game in which both sides converted late penalties. For Celtic, the result meant little. Carter-Vickers’ return meant everything.
The United States international ruptured his Achilles in a Europa League win over Sturm Graz, an injury that can wreck seasons and careers.
“At first, I just thought I had a bit of cramp in my calf,” he said. That illusion vanished quickly. “Pretty soon after that, when the physios saw it, they thought it was a rupture in the Achilles, which it turned out to be. Obviously at that point, you know it’s going to be a long-term injury.”
From there, it became a grind. Three weeks in a cast. Eight more in a boot. No drive, no push-off, barely any movement in his foot.
“For me, it was just about understanding that’s the situation you’re in and just working towards getting back in the best shape and the best way possible,” he explained. “It was just about not getting too far ahead of yourself and kind of chasing small gains and being happy with small gains.”
The tiny victories mattered: the first flicker of movement in the ankle, the first step without discomfort, the first training session at full tilt. “When I did get a bit of movement back in my foot, it was about taking that as a win and being positive about it and then after that you’re chasing the next thing and the next thing.”
Now he is back on the grass, back in the back line, and for O’Neill that is as valuable as any new signing. A fit Carter-Vickers gives Celtic authority and calm in defence, something they lacked at times last season.
Sutton’s warning: “Celtic need to spend £50m”
If Carter-Vickers’ return is a boost and Duran’s arrival a start, the scale of the job still ahead was spelled out bluntly by former Celtic striker Chris Sutton.
He believes the champions may need to spend more than £50m to overhaul the squad properly, retain their Premiership crown and avoid being outclassed again in Europe.
“Martin worked wonders last season. I didn’t see Celtic winning the title from the position which he was put in on a couple of occasions,” Sutton told Sky Sports News. “I mean, the run towards the end of the season was extraordinary but I still think you can’t get away from the fact there needs to be a lot of change at Celtic in terms of recruitment.”
Celtic staggered at times last year, then sprinted through the final straight. That late surge thrilled the support, but it also masked structural issues Sutton insists cannot be ignored.
“They’ve got the Champions League qualifier which is really important and, however exciting it was for Celtic fans to end up getting over the line last season, you can’t get away from the fact that Celtic struggled at times throughout the season. Martin will be looking to, I’m sure, bring players in.”
The departures could be as telling as the arrivals. “It’ll be interesting to see who goes out from Celtic,” Sutton added. “It looks like Reo Hatate will go, possibly Daizen Maeda, Arne Engels but they’re big players for the team. Who are Celtic going to replace those type of players with?
“Celtic are possibly going to have to spend up to or more than £50m really because the squad does need a rebuild.”
That is the scale of the challenge being laid at the board’s door. Replace creative heartbeat Reo Hatate, relentless runner Daizen Maeda and influential Arne Engels with equal or better quality, while also deepening a squad that must navigate domestic pressure and Champions League intensity.
O’Neill’s miracle run last season bought him time and trust. It did not lessen the demands of what comes next.
Title defence begins under the lights
The countdown is short. Celtic open their Scottish Premiership title defence at home to Dundee on August 3, a Monday night 7.30pm kick-off, live on Sky Sports.
It will close a landmark opening weekend in which all six top-flight fixtures are broadcast live, but all eyes in Glasgow will be on what kind of Celtic side walks out under the Parkhead lights.
Will Duran be in the line-up, fresh from Qarabag and thrown straight into the noise? Will there be more new faces beside him, evidence that O’Neill’s “next couple of weeks” promise has been kept? Will key names still be there, or will the rebuild already have claimed its first high-profile exits?
The champions have their title. They have their manager. They have their first signing on the way and a cornerstone defender back from a brutal injury.
Now comes the hard part: proving that last season’s surge was not the peak, but the platform.
