West Ham break EFL record to sign Engels for £22m

Arne Engels is the second high-profile departure from Celtic this summer following Daizen Maeda’s move to promoted Ipswich

West Ham United have broken the EFL transfer record by paying a £22m fee to sign midfielder Arne Engels from Scottish champions Celtic.

The 22-year-old Belgium international has signed a five-year contract after West Ham paid what they called a “record fee paid by an EFL Championship club”.

It tops the £17.5m paid by Ipswich Town a year ago to sign Norway forward Sindre Walle Egeli.

Following relegation in May, West Ham start their first Championship season since 2012 with a trip to Burnley on Sunday.

But Engels, who scored 17 goals and provided 22 assists in 100 Celtic appearances, will not be available to make his debut until the home league derby against Charlton Athletic at the London Stadium on Saturday, 22 August.

Engels is West Ham’s fourth summer signing after the recruitment of Venezuela midfielder Keiber Lamadrid, Dutch defender Joel Veltman and Israel winger Manor Solomon.

West Ham director of player recruitment Nils Koppen told the club website: “Arne is a player we have been tracking for some time as a key target.

“For a player who is still very young with his best years in front of him, he has very good experience and has established himself at a big club, showing consistency and confidence.

“Arne has the right traits, both as a player and as a character, to fit into what we are trying to build moving forward. He is very motivated to be here for this challenge.”

Engels, who has made four appearances for Belgium, won back-to-back Scottish Premiership titles with Celtic after arriving from Augsburg in August 2024, having begun his career at Club Brugge.

“It’s a really nice project to come into,” he said. “To try to go back to the Premier League. That’s the big goal.

“It’s just up to me to hopefully help the team with it and together with the supporters to get some wins. Hopefully it’s going to be a good year.”

Birmingham sign midfielder Bird from Bristol City

Birmingham City have signed midfielder Max Bird from Bristol City for an undisclosed fee.

The 25-year-old arrives at St Andrew’s on a three-year deal, becoming Blues’ sixth signing of the summer.

Bird, who had a year left to run on his deal at Ashton Gate, made 68 appearances for the Robins and scored three goals during his two years with the club after joining from Derby County where he played 200 games.

“He [Bird] brings a significant amount of Championship experience and has been part of teams that have enjoyed success,” said Blues boss Chris Davies.

“He’s also captained Derby on several occasions, so he brings leadership qualities and a good understanding of what is required to compete consistently in this league.

“He gives us versatility in an important area and has a really good profile for what we need. We’re delighted to have him on board and we’re looking forward to working with him.”

Luton re-sign winger Lawrence on loan from Man City

Luton Town have re-signed winger Emilio Lawrence on a season-long loan from Manchester City.

The 20-year-old spent the end of the 2025-26 season on loan at Kenilworth Road, making 21 appearances and scoring twice - including in the Hatters’ EFL Trophy victory at Wembley.

Lawrence - who is yet to play for City’s first team - began his career in Everton’s academy before joining City in 2022 and has won age-group caps for Scotland up to Under-21 level.

“From the last day of the season, I was clear with Emilio that my intention was to bring him back,” said Luton boss Jack Wilshere.

“He did well with us, so of course he then has more interest in him than he would have had last January, but I’m so happy that he sees us as a club where he needs to be to continue his development.”

Lawrence told the Hatters website: “I believe he [Wilshere] can really develop me as a player. I think it’s very important to have a manager that believes in you the way he does me, and that just fills me with a lot of confidence to go out on the pitch and do what I do, and just to work hard for him.”

Romero reflects on Spurs stay as Atletico move confirmed

Cristian Romero says he “wasn’t perfect” during his five years with Tottenham Hotspur, with his move to Atletico Madrid confirmed.

The La Liga side have paid £34.2m for the 28-year-old Argentina centre-back, who has joined on a five-year deal.

Romero’s last game for Tottenham was against Sunderland in April, when he left the field in tears with a knee injury that would rule him out of Spurs’ last six Premier League games of the season.

The team were in a relegation battle and Romero upset fans by planning to be in Argentina for their final game, to watch his first club Belgrano play in the Primera Division Apertura final.

He ultimately returned to England to attend Spurs’ 1-0 win over Everton, which meant they stayed up and finished 17th for a second consecutive season.

“I know I wasn’t perfect,” Romero posted on X. “But one thing gives me peace: I always gave everything. I defended this shirt with pride and with all my heart.”

Romero joined Tottenham from Atalanta in 2021 and became a mainstay in their defence, making 156 appearances.

His best moment with Spurs was helping the club win their first trophy in 17 years as they beat Manchester United in the 2025 Europa League final.

“When I arrived, I had a clear dream: to leave my name in this club’s history,” Romero added.

“I knew the only way was through hard work, sacrifice and achieving something that had seemed so difficult for so long: lifting a trophy again. And we did it.

“I’m leaving the club, but a part of my heart will always remain here. Once I was one of you. Today, I leave as one of you forever.

“With all my love and respect. Thank you for everything.”

Shakhtar agree to play Champions League ties at Chelsea

Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk have agreed to play Champions League home games at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge this season.

It means that west London will host at least four fixtures in the expanded league phase of the competition, with the draw to come next Thursday.

However, it remains subject to regulatory approval but Uefa, European football’s governing body, and Hammersmith and Fulham Council have signed the move off.

Upon announcing the agreement, which is understood to be non-commercial, Chelsea said: “FC Shakhtar have played in countries across Europe and we look forward to welcoming them to London for their Champions League campaign this year.”

“We will be working with the Shakhtar team closely over the coming weeks to ensure that matchdays run safely and smoothly for their team and supporters.”

Shakhtar said they are “convinced” the move will provide “unforgettable emotions for Ukrainian and English fans”.

“Playing our Champions League home matches at Stamford Bridge is a special opportunity for Shakhtar,” their statement read.

“We are grateful to Chelsea Football Club for the opportunity to host our games at this special venue.”

Shakhtar have been unable to use their Donbas Arena since the 2014 Russia-backed annexation of Donetsk, playing domestic matches in Kyiv and Lviv, and European home games in Germany, Slovenia and Poland.

Chelsea became the preferred option, as exclusively revealed by BBC Sport, because of the chance to play at the Blues’ 40,000-capacity stadium.

The clubs have built a strong relationship since Chelsea signed Mykhailo Mudryk in 2023 and through their involvement in the charity match Game4Ukraine.

Fulham’s Craven Cottage and Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium were also considered as Shakhtar explored options for bringing elite-level European football to west London.

Both have smaller capacities than Stamford Bridge and the proposition of playing Europe’s biggest clubs or even English rivals in London has officials believing they can sell out a larger arena.

The move is intended to connect with some of the 32,000 Ukraine-born residents in the capital, according to the latest Office for National Statistics figures, with about 100,000 people of Ukrainian heritage living in the UK.

The availability of Chelsea’s stadium follows the club’s 10th-place Premier League finish last season, which left them without European football.