Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is different to other free agents looking to return to top European football – he still has a lot left.
That’s the opinion of European football expert Andy Brassell, who believes the former England star can be an instant hit at Celtic.
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Hoops manager Martin O’Neill confirmed this earlier this week he had conversations with Oxlade-Chamberlain about moving to Scotland.
The 32-year-old is a free agent after leaving Besiktas last summer, making him available for a move to a new club outside the transfer window.
However, Oxlade-Chamberlain must be signed before Friday if he wants to play for his new team in Europe this season.
Oxlade Chamberlain in the race against time to join Celtic in the middle of the UEFA deadline
The Hoops are reportedly in advanced discussions with the 35-year-old England international about completing a move to Glasgow.
While he could prove hugely influential in Celtic’s bid to extend Hearts’ six-point lead in the Scottish Premier League, he may not be able to feature in the upcoming Europa League play-off games against Stuttgart.
Celtic have until 11pm on Thursday evening to register new eligible players for the knockout games, which also include the play-offs.
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s final senior appearance was an 11-minute cameo in the Turkish giants’ victory over Adana Demirspor in May 2025.
Since then, the midfielder has maintained his fitness by training with Arsenal, having spent six years with the club earlier in his career.
Oxlade-Chamberlain played for the Gunners U21s in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Manchester United in December.
Can new signings play in the league or Europa League knockout phase?
The UEFA rule in question states: “After the conclusion of the league phase and before the start of the knockout phase, a club may register a maximum of three new players eligible to play for the remaining games of the current competition.”
“Such registrations must be completed by February 5, 2026 (midnight CET) at the latest.”
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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta even refused to rule out a move for his former teammate after Mikel Merino suffered a broken foot.
Several of Oxlade-Chamberlain’s old English friends also face the challenge of returning to top-flight football after a long break.
Jesse Lingard is a free agent after spending the last two years in South Korea, while Raheem Sterling has been without a club since ending his contract at Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Paul Pogba has managed just 30 minutes in three substitute appearances in Monaco since his comeback from his two-year drugs ban in November.
The former Man United superstar has since missed the last nine games in all competitions with a calf injury.
However, football expert Brassell told The Pitch Prospect.com that Celtic should not be afraid that Oxlade-Chamberlain could suffer a similar fate.
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“He can have a huge impact on Celtic quite quickly”
“Oxlade-Chamberlain has been a serviceable first-team player of late,” he argued, in contrast to other big-name free agents.
“One reason for his move from Besiktas was that the personal situation was not ideal for him as his family obviously stayed at home.”
“It was also the fact that Besiktas has clearly underperformed in recent years as they have spent a lot of money and of course they have also spent a fair amount of money on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s wages.”
“I’ve seen him in person a few times in the Turkish Super League and I think it’s clear he’s still a big player there.”
“I think he can get to a level pretty quickly where he can have a huge impact for Celtic. And I think that’s the huge difference between him and Dele.” [Alli] and Pogba.”
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Former Arsenal and Liverpool player Oxlade-Chamberlain spent two seasons in the Turkish Süper Lig in his first spell abroad.
The Englishman made 30 first-team appearances in his first season and helped Besiktas win the Turkish Cup.
That trophy win secured the club a place in the Europa League last season before they were dropped from the team by then coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst, who is now Arne Slot’s assistant at Anfield.
Oxlade-Chamberlain played under nine managers in his 24 months in Turkey, including Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, none of whom lasted longer than 20 games.
“Even after being left out of the first team for the first time, he came back and was really influential,” Brassell added.
“You think when Solskjaer first came in, he was a big player for him back then. He influenced big games.”
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Besiktas disaster “not Oxlade-Chamberlain’s fault”
“He scored the winning goal against Fenerbahce and he was someone who could still run all day, he could still fill a number of midfield positions, he still has great skills.”
“So for me it’s not a big leap again for him to make the jump to where he’s an influential player.”
“A lot of the reasons why it didn’t work out for him at Besiktas was circumstance and in reality he was seen as a symbol of a failed regime and a failed transfer policy. None of that was really his fault.”
“He was thrown out because suddenly they weren’t able to hunt trophies anymore and he was still getting a lot of money.”
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“So they had to take him on from there. So a lot of where he fell behind Besiktas wasn’t his fault.”
“In some cases he has still performed well in very, very difficult situations. The last time I saw him play in person they were beaten 5-0 at home by Club Brugge in the Europa League.”
“And he still played really well. He still had a really good impact on that game even though the team was a shambles.”
“He was hard-working, hard-working, there was still a lot of quality. But he just found himself in a situation where, after playing all his life in clubs that were fighting for certain things, he was suddenly in a completely dysfunctional situation where he could only do so much.”
“So I feel like there’s a lot left in the Oxlade-Chamberlain tank.”