It was revealed last night that Brighton and Celtic have begun negotiations regarding a potential summer transfer for the 23-year-old midfield player.
This summer, Atalanta had three bids for O’Riley rejected; nonetheless, it’s rumoured Brighton could shell out a lot of cash to acquire the midfielder. Southampton similarly had a plan rejected.
For the upcoming season, Brendan Rodgers is determined to keep the player at Celtic, and he has stated that the offers received thus far do not come close to matching the player’s price.
It’s believed that before approving a contract to let O’Riley depart the team, Celtic will demand a record amount.
The current Scottish transfer record is £25 million, as evidenced by Kieran Tierney’s 2019 transfer from Celtic to Arsenal and the 2023 transfer of Jota for the same amount.
However, The Scottish Sun claims Brighton intends to make a summertime approach of at least £25 million for O’Riley.
It is stated that the club will have additional talks in the upcoming days in an effort to finalise a transfer agreement.
In a 4-0 victory over Kilmarnock on the inaugural weekend of the Scottish Premiership, O’Riley played the entire game.
Regarding transfer rumours involving O’Riley, Rodgers stated on Sunday, “We are pretty calm about that.” Yes, there have been offers for him, but they are far short of what the player is worth.
“He simply keeps working every day, and he knows where it’s at, as I mentioned earlier.
However, based on his play throughout the preseason and today, it’s clear that he is really focused on supporting the club and becoming a better player because he recognises that he is in a wonderful position to do so.
“Until that changes then we will continue to work with Matt to help improve his game.”
