Former Celtic midfielder Billy Stark has been full of praise for current Celtic star Matt O’Riley, particularly highlighting his remarkable goal-scoring abilities this season.

O’Riley, now a Denmark international, has already surpassed his previous season’s tally, scoring an impressive 10 goals before the Scottish Premiership winter break.

He’s been the best player in the country by a country mile, and is racking up plenty of interest from down south. Although, reports say that it will take a record-breaking fee for Celtic to allow to Dane to leave.

Stark, who played for Celtic between 1987 and 1990 and later served as an assistant manager in the 1990s, expressed his admiration for O’Riley’s talents in a conversation with Football Scotland.

O’Riley’s acquisition by Celtic from MK Dons for just £1.5 million has been a masterstroke.

The 23-year-old’s versatility in midfield and his goal-scoring prowess have made a significant impact, and Stark sees him as a standout player.

Stark said: “It’s great to see a midfielder getting goals. It’s not the norm. Things have changed with box-to-box midfielders since my day.

“Matt’s had some great finishes, but arriving in the box for one-touch shots is something you don’t see as often. His goal against St Johnstone was a great finish from outside the box. In my day it was incumbent on us (midfielders) to chip in with goals.

“I don’t know if that’s the case so much now as it’s more 4-3-3, and wide players who have to help more but Matt is showing he can play lots of different midfield roles. Scoring’s the hardest thing, and he’s most effective when he can get in the box and get on the end of things.

“He’s been some buy. They are the signings who stick out, when you get real value for money. I’m sure Celtic saw potential, but you could never guarantee it would come to fruition the way it has.

“O’Riley’s a strong boy and has plenty of attributes I didn’t have. I was a bit more of a ball player, not that he’s short there either. He has a slightly better left foot than me too!

“I was 6ft 2in and that was very unusual for a midfielder. Now in the Premier League down south they are all 6ft-plus. You can have a spell but you have to do it over a long period to be recognised as a real midfield scorer, and I’ve got no doubt he’ll go on to do that.

“But he has more to his game too. He has a real physicality in the middle, which wasn’t one of my strengths. He can handle the modern game when you have to protect the ball and go into challenges and the rest of it too.”