Denmark head coach Kasper Hjulmand faced tough decisions while selecting his squad for Euro 2024, one of which was the exclusion of Celtic standout midfielder, Matt O’Riley.
Denmark’s Matt O’Riley in action with Northern Ireland’s Isaac Price Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff
After deciding to exclude the Dane from his squad, he faced some tough questions.
Despite O’Riley’s impressive season, where he scored 19 goals and provided 18 assists in 49 appearances, helping Celtic clinch their 12th league title in 13 years while also securing the Scottish Cup, he did not make the final 26-man roster for the tournament in Germany.
O’Riley also picked up Celtic’s Player of the year and Young Player of the Year at the club’s awards night. He also has a Champions League man of the match award at home.
Hjulmand addressed the media about his decision, acknowledging the difficulty in leaving out a player of O’Riley’s calibre.
“Matt’s been a really good player, he’s had a great season,” he said, as quoted by the Scotsman.
“I’ve picked six players that we can move around a bit. It’s been at the expense of Matt, but it was a tough choice.
“I know he’s going to play a lot of international games. He couldn’t do anything differently.
“I don’t want to say the most difficult choices, because I think there have been some difficult choices. I can’t just say three, because there are more than three who deserve to play. Matt O’Riley is one.”
There are a lot of clubs around Europe keeping a close eye on the midfielder. It’s exp[ected he’ll attract a lot of interest over the summer.
