Callum McGregor has called for Celtic to retain Matt O’Riley for another season, with the Celtic captain insisting that they’ll still make good money on the highly rated midfielder next summer.
Speaking ahead of Celtic’s third and final match on their USA Tour, this time against Chelsea after wins against DC United (4-0) and English Champions Manchester City (4-3), McGregor spoke for the Celtic players, revealing that they’d all love O’Riley to hang around for another season.
And if the latest offer from Southampton is anything to go by (do they think Celtic is holding a half price sale this week with their £14m offer?) then Matt will be going nowhere this summer.
However the window will surely have it’s challenges for Celtic and if our Board get their valuation of £25m met then we all know the inevitable will happen, regardless of what Callum McGregor or the Celtic support thinks.
“We’d love him to stay, for sure. Listen, he’s a hugely important player for us. He was important last year and hopefully that will be the case again this year,” Calmac told Football Scotland. “The club has him on a long contract. There’s no reason why we can’t keep him. Even if we keep him for another 12 months he could still be sold for good money.
“Let’s hope that’s how it works out. It’s another year here, another maybe eight or 10 games in the Champions League for him to learn and get even better. We hope we can keep him and don’t see why not. But obviously that’s above my pay grade,” the Celtic captain admitted.
IMAGO / ZUMA Press WireJuly 23, 2024: Brendan Rodgers with Pep Guardiola before the match between Manchester City and Celtic at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Photo Greg Atkins
Brendan Rodgers says he wants to add quality signings but another way to look at this is that having Matt O’Riley starring for Celtic in the Champions League makes sure our team has more quality than if he’s sold this summer.
And if Atalanta and Southampton are the teams that O’Riley is attracting bids from at the moment, a stand-out campaign for Celtic in Europe plus breaking into the Denmark squad, will surely raise that a level or two next time around.
And what a boost it will give the Celtic support if the board hold firm and say that Matt O’Riley has agreed to stay at the club for this season.
Matt O’Riley of Celtic poses for a photo with the PlayStation Player Of The Match award after the UEFA Champions League match between Celtic FC and Atletico Madrid at Celtic Park on October 25, 2023. (Photo by Jan Kruger – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
