Given that they play in a vaguely similar area of the park, are both vying for a place in the same national side but play their club football on different sides of the Glasgow divide, it is only natural (if more than a little contrived) that something of a rivalry has been confected between Celtic’s Arne Engels and his compatriot at Rangers, Nicolas Raskin.
Comparisons between the pair were heightened when Raskin outshone Engels in the most recent Old Firm derby, and earned a place in the Red Devils’ squad at the expense of Celtic’s record signing before impressing on his international debut under their new manager Rudi Garcia.
If there is one thing that Engels has learned in his debut season in Scotland though, it is that blocking out conjecture about his performances is a handy survival tool.
Whether it is the debate around whether he has justified his hefty price tag or arguments around who has the better Belgian patrolling their midfield, Engels has kept his focus on improving as an individual and bringing his best to training and matches with Celtic.
“It's not really a rivalry, just what you're making out of it!” Engels said.
“My big aim here is now just to win the treble and that's the only thing in my mind.
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“If that comes, I'm performing well and doing well, it's not up to me to do the selection. I'm just working hard and doing my best, then we will see.”
There is a narrative around Engels that the Celtic support in the main want to see a little bit more from him, but with 10 goals and 12 assists so far in his debut season, an argument could be made that the 21-year-old has found his feet just fine, even if he may have a bit to do to convince some that he was worth the outlay it took to prise him away from Augsburg.
Again, though, the question of whether his contribution so far represents value for money isn’t one that is causing him to lose too much sleep.
“I don't care,” he said.
“I'm here to just perform, and to get better. I'm still young, I still need to learn. I think I have good numbers and good performances.
“It's not about me, it's about the team. I want to be here to help the team and win trophies.
“I think I'm in a good place, I'm doing well here. We are still in the place to get the three trophies. That was a big aim for me.
“I love [the pressure], it's why you play football, to win trophies, and of course Celtic is a massive club.
“Everybody has something to say, and of course I'm not reading it but sometimes you're hearing it from my parents telling me ‘They are saying this or that'.
“But it is up to me to just perform and enjoy my game, and enjoy life a bit. It is also an important thing to enjoy your life, and also playing.
“I love it here, I love being in Glasgow, it's been an enjoyable season and hopefully we end it well.
“I love it. The passion is amazing here, everyone is so passionate and so involved. If you walk into the city, they are either shouting your name...or doing something!
“It's really nice to feel that passion, not only in the stadium but outside the stadium. My parents love it here. I'm in a good place.”
Part of Engels’ adaptation to life at Celtic has been meeting the varying challenges that playing for the club throws up, from competing against the best teams in the world in the Champions League arena, to overcoming low blocks in less glamorous surroundings, often on difficult pitches.
Both he and his team though have so far navigated those challenges effectively, with an impressive campaign in Europe’s elite competition and what looks like an almost certain clean sweep of domestic honours set to be completed in the coming weeks.
“That would be amazing,” he said.
“That was a goal at the beginning of the season, it is every time a goal for Celtic to win trophies.
“We still have a lot of games we need to play, we are in a good place in the league and in the [Scottish Cup] final, which is a step closer to our goal.
“But that's all about getting the mindset to play games really well and to perform like [on Sunday] in the first half especially.
“You kill them, you put in a lot of energy and then everything goes really well.
“It is something that I have learned this year and that was also a thing I wanted to experience, being the better team, and that I also needed to make the game a bit, and create a lot.
“I think I'm doing well and the team are doing well.”
