Arne Engels ranks Celtic Park alongside Borussia Dortmund's yellow wall as stadium atmospheres compared

Belgian made his Bundesliga debut in Dortmund

Arne Engels is no stranger to the yellow wall that will greet Celtic players in Dortmund on Tuesday.

Signal Iduna Park, the 80,000 capacity home of Borussia Dortmund, is reknowned for the intense atmosphere generated by the Südtribüne (south stand) which at 328ft long and 131ft high is the largest grandstand in Europe.

Engels introduction to German football took place inside the famed arena with his first match for Augsburg ending in a 4-3 defeat in January 2023. He was also on the end of a 5-1 hammering in Dortmund last season but Engels insists the environment should hold no fears for his team-mates given their experience of playing at Parkhead.

The famous Yellow Wall of Dortmund that will greet Celtic at the Signal Iduna Park. (Photo by Jarg Schaler/Getty Images)placeholder image
The famous Yellow Wall of Dortmund that will greet Celtic at the Signal Iduna Park. (Photo by Jarg Schaler/Getty Images) | Bongarts/Getty Images

Celtic’s record signing now gets a swift return to Germany and he is relishing the chance to relive some happy memories.

Looking back at his Bundesliga debut, the 21-year-old said: “I came from the second division in Belgium so to come here and play in front of 80,000 people was amazing. It was quite a crazy game, 4-3 for Dortmund. Also it’s close to Belgium so all my family were here.

“It’s always amazing to be here and also to come back because I played here a few times. It’s an amazing stadium and it’s always positive to play here.

“I haven’t spoken to a lot of the guys about it because they know it and we also have an amazing atmosphere at Celtic Park

“So it’s kind of the same. Everyone knows how to handle it. If you can play at Celtic Park, you can play everywhere.”

Arne Engels addresses a press conference on the eve of the Celtic's Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park. (Photo by INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
Arne Engels addresses a press conference on the eve of the Celtic's Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park. (Photo by INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images

Celtic will be hoping, almost expecting, to get a positive result on the back of an impressive start to the campaign.

Brendan Rodgers' side have won every game they have played this season and have struck 16 goals in their last three games, including five against Slovan Bratislava in their opening encounter of the competition.

Engels sees no reason why they cannot genuinely aim to keep that winning run going in Dortmund.

“If you don’t have the belief, then you are better not to come and say it’s 5-0 for them,” he said. “We want to come here and win like every game. You always need to have this mindset.

“Everyone is really focused on their jobs and that’s what makes us really strong as a team. We are setting the standards for ourselves every day as a team and doing a really good job there. It’s up to us now to show it like we do every week.”

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