In order to solidify their hold on the top spot, Brendan Rodgers’ team thrashed Aberdeen, and O’Riley believes the champions are only getting better.
Tuesday, hit for six. Six on Sunday, joy. In the course of just six days, Celtic has experienced quite the reversal.
However, Matt O’Riley is adamant that no one should be taken aback by the overwhelming reaction to the Hoops’ crushing victory in the Champions League in Madrid, as they destroyed Aberdeen to solidify their hold on the top spot in the Premiership.
The master of midfield claims that it was only a matter of time until Brendan Rodgers’ team delivered a “real doing.” Furthermore, according to O’Riley, the 100-minute extravaganza demonstrates that the winners haven’t lost any of the never-give-up mentality that has allowed them to win back-to-back titles.
Three goals in stoppage time to add to their comfortable lead over the Dons said it all. With five different scorers and Kyogo Furuhashi netting his ninth of the league campaign, the Hoops are motoring back on home soil.
And O’Riley said: “Perfect response, I think, to midweek. A result like that was pending in the league, to be honest.
“We’ve put in enough good performances and it was time—with the utmost respect – that we gave someone a real doing. There were a lot of chances created and it could’ve been more. It was needed.
“I shanked one from about three yards but we were on it right from the start with our runs in behind. We let them know they were going to be in for a game right from the start and we maintained that level throughout.
“We tire teams out, the way we play. And I think when you are three-nil down at Celtic Park and you have been running for 90 minutes and haven’t had much of the ball, naturally you are going to be tired.
“The spaces do open up and we had boys coming off the bench for the last half hour ready to fire. James [Forrest], and then Bull [David Tunrbull] comes on and scores.
“I think having that strength in depth to come on and really push the fitness levels, it is hard for teams to live with. I said to James as soon as I saw the board ‘we have 10 minutes here, we are going to get more chances’. And we did.”
O’Riley has struck up an almost telepathic understanding with goal machine Kyogo and produced another assist for the Japan international to make it 2-0 against the Dons.
His perfectly timed run and cut back left an easy tap-in for the frontman. But it’s the movement of Kyogo that O’Riley says is top class.
So good, in fact, that he reckons Celtic can squeeze even more goals out of their talisman.
Their relationship was summed up when Kyogo paid tribute to his pal by pointing out his part in the goal during the celebration. And O’Riley said: “He’s a nice man! Me and him have a really good relationship on the pitch and I think probably 70 percent of the assists for Celtic have been for him.
“That shows how good he is to play with and how easy is to play with him.
“His movement’s top class. I actually think we need to use his runs a little bit more because his movement’s so good.
“He deserves the ball to be given to him because he works hard to create the space for himself. We need to keep utilising him because he’s our best goalscorer and that would be helpful going forwards.”
The trouncing was all the more impressive given the fact Celtic were without the injured Daizen Maeda, Liel Abada and Reo Hatate.
Oh Hyeon-Gyu netted an injury time double after replacing the dazed Kyogo who was cemented by Slobodan Rubezic.
New signings Luis Palma and Yang Hyun-Jun stepped up to the plate in the wide areas too with a goal apiece and an assist too.
Honduras international Palma has now struck five times in 12 appearances since his summer move from Aris Salonika.
And O’Riley said: “He has a lot of quality, we know that. We have to keep demanding that from him every game, pushing him to be at that level, because he’s definitely got a lot about him.
“I think he has impacted at this club really well so far, so the hope is that can continue.
“We’ve missed loads of good players, we missed Liel [Abada] early in the season who’s a really important player. “We have other players like Maik [Nawrocki] who’s injured as well. We’ve a really strong squad and it shows with boys like Yang who could come in and left his mark on the Aberdeen game, with Oh stepping up again.
“That shows the depth of the squad and if everyone can start to get a bit of momentum we’ll be in a really good place going forwards.
“The way we play we’re always going to create lots of chances and the more people who score the better. “Naturally, they are going to have a bit more confidence and you sensed that throughout the team in the 6-0. I thought everybody looked really, really sharp and we’re all happy for each other when we score.”
Be the first to comment