Celtic Set for Summer Surge with Duran Signing and Carter-Vickers Return
Martin O’Neill expects Celtic’s summer to finally catch fire, with Camilo Duran set to become the first new face through the door – and pressure growing for many more to follow.
The 24-year-old forward has completed his medical and will join from Qarabag for a fee in the region of £6m after a standout 2025-26 campaign that saw him score five goals in the Champions League. For a support restless about the lack of activity, Duran represents the first tangible sign that the champions are starting to move.
O’Neill knows one signing will not be enough.
“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 real work is only just beginning.
Oxlade-Chamberlain stays, frustration lingers
Inside the building, Celtic have made one key retention. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has agreed a new one-year deal after initially arriving on a short-term contract in January. His experience and versatility impressed O’Neill enough to earn an extension.
Yet the mood among many fans is less about who stays and more about who still hasn’t arrived. With the title defence starting in less than a month and Champions League qualifiers looming, the sense of urgency is rising. One incoming attacker and a renewed deal for a veteran midfielder will not quiet the calls for a major refresh.
The fixture list underlines the stakes. Celtic open their Scottish Premiership title defence at home to Dundee on August 3, a Monday night 7.30pm kick-off that closes an unprecedented opening weekend in which all six top-flight games will be shown live on Sky Sports. The champions will step into the spotlight early; supporters want a squad worthy of it.
Carter-Vickers back from the brink
There was at least one major positive on the pitch. Cameron Carter-Vickers pulled on a Celtic shirt again, playing the first half of a 1-1 draw with Shelbourne in which both sides scored late penalties. It was his first appearance since October after a ruptured Achilles – the kind of injury that can quietly end careers.
“At first, I just thought I had a bit of cramp in my calf,” the United States international said, recalling the moment in a Europa League win over Sturm Graz when everything changed.
“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.”
What followed was a grind, not a glamour story.
“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.
“It was just about not getting too far ahead of yourself and kind of chasing small gains and being happy with small gains. I was in a cast for three weeks then a boot for eight.
“You can’t really move your foot in any type of direction at first so right at the beginning of the rehab, it was about 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.”
His return gives O’Neill back the defensive pillar around which much of Celtic’s recent success has been built. With a rebuild looming further up the pitch, having certainty at the back matters.
Sutton sounds the alarm on spending
Outside the dressing room, the debate over what Celtic must do next is far less cautious.
Chris Sutton, never shy of a hard verdict on his former club, believes the scale of the task is huge. In his view, Celtic may need to spend more than £50m to overhaul the squad properly if they are to retain their Premiership crown and compete in the Champions League.
“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,” he 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.”
The late surge to the title impressed him. The overall campaign did not.
“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 potential departures only sharpen the edge of his warning.
“It’ll be interesting to see who goes out from Celtic. 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 challenge in front of O’Neill: strengthen while key figures may be walking out the door, and do it quickly enough to hit the ground running in Europe and at home.
Duran’s imminent arrival, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s renewal and Carter-Vickers’ return offer the outline of a plan. The question now is whether Celtic will match Sutton’s call for a full-scale rebuild or try to defend their title and face Europe with something closer to evolution than revolution.
