Manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed Celtic rejected an offer from Atletico Madrid for Matt O’Riley and says the midfielder will not be sold this month.
After signing a new contract in September that extends until 2027, the Denmark international joined two years ago for £1.5 million.
This season, the 23-year-old has tallied 10 goals and given as many assists.
“There was [an offer] but Matt is a player we don’t want to lose and he won’t be going anywhere in January,” added Rodgers.
It speaks volumes about him and what the team can accomplish for a player. This season, he was awarded his first cap for his country, Spain’s Atletico Madrid, a major football league.
“However, he plays a significant role in our work. Matt has been a pleasure to deal with, and we had a nice conversation on Thursday morning. he is someone who will be here for us in the second part of the season.”
Atletico – who are fourth in La Liga, 11 points behind surprise leaders Girona – have reportedly offered a deal worth up to £20m for O’Riley.
Diego Simeone’s side played Celtic twice this season in the Champions League, inflicting a 6-0 thrashing in Spain but being held 2-2 in Glasgow in a game in which O’Riley excelled.
Rodgers said last week he was “not aware of interest” being shown in O’Riley and that Celtic had “no thoughts of selling” the player they bought from MK Dons in January 2022.The Celtic boss added then that the midfielder “is really, really happy” at the Scottish Premiership leaders and that he is relishing the opportunity to keep improving in Glasgow.
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