When Moritz Jenz arrived at Parkhead this summer, one of the most talked about topics was his previous relationship with our midfielder Matt O’Riley. The pair both came through the youth system at Fulham and were really good friends. This prompted a consistent line of questioning directed towards this subject when he first joined.
Jenz, who is currently on-loan from Lorient FC in France’s Ligue 1, has spoken to the Celtic View Podcast regarding his adaptation to life in the Hoops and has revealed his envy at O’Riley when he moved from MK Dons in League One in England to Paradise. He said: “It was even the last transfer window I was supposed to come but things didn’t go that way. I was disappointed because I really wanted to come.”
The big defender was already on the Celtic radar during the summer of 2021, but the move never materialised. This jealousness was heightened when old friend O’Riley joined the Angeball revolution. He said: “Suddenly Matt came here as well and I was even more annoyed by it because he plays for this amazing club. I was jealous because Celtic you know big stadium, fantastic club.”
Moritz Jenz and Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Rodrygo ( fights for the ball with during the UEFA Champions Leaguel match between Celtic and Real Madrid, at the Celtic Park on September 6, 2022. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)
23 year-old Jenz revealed their constant chats and when he finally had the chance to come, he didn’t hesitate after getting the right vibe from Ange Postecoglou and his project. He continued: “We kept speaking, Matt kept telling me how the club is, how the manager is and about his idea and philosophy. You get immediately like a really good feeling, this is a project I want to be in, this is a club I want to be in. They obviously got in touch again and I was very happy about it because this is good and I had a fantastic talk with the manager.”
Moritz Jenz of Celtic FC controls the ball during the UEFA Champions League group F match between Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic FC at The Marshall Jozef Pilsudski’s Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw on September 14, 2022 (Photo by Adam Nurkiewicz/Getty Images)
Moritz is grateful though, having acknowledged the fact that nobody is privy to the machinations within a football club and the heirarchy. He added: “You never know in football how things go with the decisions at clubs but there was always like communication between officials of the clubs and my agent. Thoere was always a scenario that it could happen and luckily it happened. They were very patient and I was very patient as well and the timing was perfect.”
Paul Gillespie
