Key Points
- Celtic have stepped up efforts to sign 25-year-old Eintracht Frankfurt left-back Niels Nkounkou.
- OGC Nice had an agreement with Nkounkou, but the transfer depended on Melvin Bard leaving, whose reported move to Coventry City is currently off.
- Nkounkou saw his playing time decline at Frankfurt during the 2024–25 season before making 13 appearances and playing 443 minutes on loan at Torino in 2025–26.
- Eintracht Frankfurt left the Pontoise-born defender out of their squad for the first two matches of the current season, despite a contract running until 2028.
- The former Everton and AS Saint-Étienne full-back is valued at around €3m.
Celtic FC (Glasgow Express) August 31, 2026 —As reported by Sébastien Denis of Foot Mercato, Scottish Champions Celtic have stepped up their efforts to secure the signature of Eintracht Frankfurt full-back Niels Nkounkou. The 25-year-old French defender had previously been tracked closely by Ligue 1 outfit OGC Nice, with whom he had reached an agreement in principle should Melvin Bard depart the coastal club. However, with Bard’s potential transfer to Championship side Coventry City currently not on the cards, Nkounkou’s proposed return to French football has stalled, paving the way for Celtic to make a direct move for his services.
As detailed by Foot Mercato’s reporting, Nkounkou joined Eintracht Frankfurt from AS Saint-Étienne in the summer of 2023 for a fee of €7.5m. Following a full first campaign in Germany, the Pontoise-born defender saw his first-team playing time decrease significantly during the 2024–25 season. This lack of regular action prompted a loan spell with Italian Serie A side Torino for the 2025–26 season. However, his situation failed to improve in Italy, where he was restricted to just 443 minutes of action spread across 13 appearances in all competitions.
Having returned to Germany, Nkounkou remains under contract with Die Adler until 2028, yet his immediate prospects at the Bundesliga club appear limited after being left out of Frankfurt’s opening two matches of the season. Valued at around €3m, the versatile left-back could now be set to reignite his career at Celtic Park.
Background of Niels Nkounkou’s Recent Career Development
Niels Nkounkou developed through the youth ranks at Cergy Pontoise, Rouen, and Entente SSG before joining Marseille’s reserve side in 2017. In July 2020, he made a high-profile move to Premier League club Everton under Carlo Ancelotti, seeking pathways to top-flight first-team football. During his tenure on Merseyside, Nkounkou struggled to secure a permanent starting berth, which led to a series of loans at Standard Liège, Cardiff City, and Saint-Étienne.
His impressive spell at Saint-Étienne during the latter half of the 2022–23 campaign led to a permanent transfer, which was immediately followed by a €7.5m move to Eintracht Frankfurt in September 2023. Despite scoring on his Bundesliga debut against 1. FC Köln, Nkounkou’s role progressively diminished over the next two years, resulting in his loan to Torino and his eventual exclusion from Frankfurt’s active matchday squad.
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Prediction: How This Transfer Can Affect Celtic and the Audience
If Celtic complete the signing of Niels Nkounkou for the reported €3m fee, the transfer will directly impact the club’s supporters, squad depth, and tactical options.
- Celtic Supporters & Squad Dynamics: The addition of a 25-year-old full-back with Premier League, Serie A, and Bundesliga experience provides immediate quality and competition on the left flank. Nkounkou’s dynamic attacking capabilities, honed during his time in France and England, offer tactical flexibility for Celtic’s domestic and European campaigns.
- OGC Nice and Melvin Bard: For OGC Nice, missing out on Nkounkou due to the stalled departure of Melvin Bard leaves their defensive recruitment in limbo should any late interest in Bard materialize.
- Eintracht Frankfurt: For the German club, sanctioning the move will allow them to recoup capital on an out-of-favour player whose contract runs until 2028, clearing space on their wage bill.
