Celtic Europa League Squad confirmed – Three new signings plus Jota miss out
Celtic’s Europa League squad has been confirmed and there are more than a few talking points as three summer signings miss out while there is no place for Jota who has yet to return to action after his cruciate ligament injury in April 2025…
The three new signings who miss out so will NOT feature for Celtic in the eight game league phase of the Europa League are Joel van den Berg, the 19-year-old bought from PSV Eindhoven, plus the two on-loan Chelsea starlets – Shim Mheuka and Landon Emenalo.
Celtic fans got their first glimpse of Mheuka in action last night in the 3-0 win over Aberdeen at Celtic Park, and they certainly liked what they saw. Landon Emenalo has signed for the Scottish Champions despite carrying an injury.
Martin O’Neill last night explained that he is gambling that it’s a risk worth taking and we can expect to see Emenalo in action in the hectic domestic schedule.
One player who is also currently injured but does make the squad is Callum Osmand, scorer of that iconic goal against Hearts that wrapped up the title for Celtic back in May. At the weekend Osmand went over on his ankle in the win against Falkirk and is likely to be sidelined for a few weeks.
Discussing the Europa League list, Martin O’Neill pointed out that domestic football remains a priority so it looks like a case of horse for courses in the European and domestic matches until the end of January.
The Celtic manager, as reported by BBC Sport, explained: “There are obviously some very tough decisions to be made in putting this squad together for the Europa League.
“It’s a difficult list and, for me, the most important thing is our domestic football.
“Of course, we’re disappointed about the Champions League, but the Europa League is still very strong and we want to try and do as well as we possibly can in that,” the Celtic boss said.
“But the players we have signed, we want them to make a mark initially in the domestic scene, which is the most important thing for us at this stage.
“Then we’ve got a chance to perhaps change things in February if we’re still in contention.”
Here’s the full Celtic squad for the Europa League’s League Phase…
Goalkeepers: Viljami Sinisalo, Sam Johnstone, Ross Doohan.
Defenders: Alistair Johnston, Jordan Lotomba, Liam Scales, Auston Trusty, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Dane Murray, Colby Donovan, Anthony Ralston, Kieran Tierney.
Midfielders: Benjamin Nygren, Luke McCowan, Oliver Sørensen, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mika Baur, Callum McGregor.
Forwards: Kasper Høgh, Camilo Duran, Yang Hyun-jun, Sebastian Tounekti, Callum Osmand, Haissem Hassan, James Forrest.
