Matt O’Riley sees restless Celtic transfer narrative shut down by Brendan Rodgers as boss reveals ‘strong position’

Matt O’Riley sees restless Celtic transfer narrative shut down by Brendan Rodgers as boss reveals ‘strong position’

Matt O’Riley sees restless Celtic transfer narrative shut down by Brendan Rodgers as boss reveals ‘strong position’

Brendan Rodgers is not concerned that rumors of large foreign bids will turn Matt O’Riley’s head.

With La Liga shock pace setters Girona entering the race to sign the highly-rated playmaker, the Hoops ace’s fan base is expanding.

Rodgers stated that neither Celtic nor the Parkhead club are interested in selling in January,

adding that they have not yet received any firm proposals for the Denmark star.

Over the past 12 months, O’Riley has drawn attention from a number of clubs, including Leeds United, Inter Milan, and Crystal Palace.

However, Rodgers stated that the 23-year-old’s primary goal for the second half of the season is to win championships at Celtic. The

Hoops manager responded, “No,” when asked if O’Riley would be agitated by the transfer talk.

I believe we seen it during the summer,

when there was evident interest and he had the option to depart.

“But we didn’t want to sell for one and, two, he was very happy here. So, yeah, he is a great guy to have around and a really good team-mate. I could see him grow as a leader as well, within the team.

“He is really enjoying his football. We don’t want to be losing anyone. The plan was to add to the squad and that’s still the plan.

“The club is in a strong position. We’ve no need to sell and no intention of selling. It’s all speculation and we all know the game, we know how it works.

“While the players are here every day to attempt to improve them, that is all I am thinking about. During my time here, Matt has been

exceptional in every way, including form, quality, professionalism, age, and everything else.

However, Rodgers said that he’s not shocked to hear O’Riley’s name being bandied about the continent. “It’s exciting to watch a young

player grow,” he remarked, “but he deserves it because he gives his all in the game.”

He prepares himself well off the field, which offers him confidence. He then works next to that, and his performance on the field is

evident. He moves around the field with such grace, and at that age, he still has the drive and desire to get better.

Instead of letting his team deteriorate, Rodgers wants to strengthen it, and the lone January acquisition to date is wide player Nicolas

Kuhn. But he let Celtics supporters know that he’s ready to hold off on pursuing his highest goals.

Rodgers said: “It’s about getting the right players in. You can easily bring players in. But sometimes it takes a bit of time and patience.

We’ve got the winger we wanted and there are some other positions we want to improve.

“If the players are available and we can do a deal, then great. If not we’ll move on to the summer. It will only be if the right players are not available.”

Rodgers is considering a striker but the pressure has eased with Kyogo left out of Japan’s squad for the Asian Cup. He said: “It’s an area we have to look at, we can’t ignore it.

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