Brendan Rodgers has revealed he had a sit down with Matt O’Riley on Thursday morning.
News broke on Wednesday that Celtic had received a loan with an obligation to buy proposal from this season’s Champions League rivals Atletico Madrid. It’s believed that the fee was in the region of £20 million.
After CeltsAreHere reported yesterday that Matt O’Riley was going nowhere this window, Brendan Rodgers echoed this during Thursday’s press conference.
The gaffer revealed he had a chat with the midfielder, who’s been pivotal in midfield this season for Celtic, about the bid before affirming that he was staying put this January.
“I had a chat with Matt this morning,” the manager said on Celtic TV.
“One of the things I’ve always been impressed with is Matt’s mentality. How he approaches his profession and obviously the respect he has here for Celtic.
“We had an opportunity in the summer but he was happy to extend here, which is great.
“Atletico Madrid is a big club but he obviously knows he’s in a great place here.
“He’s really kicked on this season in his progression and he wants to continue with that.”
Celtic are braced for more bids for the player, with interest from Girona, Inter Milan and Premier League sides.
Losing Matt O’Riley just now could really put Celtic’s title hopes in jeopardy, but with the Champions League money at stake next year, the board will be fully aware of the complications selling Matt O’Riley could bring.
