Brendan Rodgers has no fears Matt O’Riley ’s head will be turned by talk of big money bids from abroad.
The Hoops ace has a growing list of admirers with La Liga shock pace setters Girona entering the race to land the highly-rated playmaker. Rodgers insisted Celtic have yet to receive any concrete offers for the Denmark star – and the Parkhead club are not interested in selling in January either.
O’Riley has been attracting attention for the last 12 months with Inter Milan, Crystal Palace and Leeds United among the clubs in the frame. But Rodgers insisted the 23-year-old’s focus is fully on securing silverware at Celtic in the second half of the season. When asked if O’Riley could be unsettled by the transfer talk, the Hoops boss said: “No. I think we saw that in the summer when there was clearly interest and he could have left.
“But we didn’t want to sell for one and, two, he was very happy here. So, yeah, he is a great guy to have around and a really good team-mate. I could see him grow as a leader as well, within the team.
“He is really enjoying his football. We don’t want to be losing anyone. The plan was to add to the squad and that’s still the plan.
“The club is in a strong position. We’ve no need to sell and no intention of selling. It’s all speculation and we all know the game, we know how it works.
“My only focus is on the players while they are here each day to try to make them better. In terms of form, quality, professionalism, age, everything , Matt has been top class in my time here. “
Rodgers admitted he’s not surprised to hear O’Riley’s name being thrown around the continent though. He said: “It’s great to see a young player develop – but he deserves it because he puts so much into his game.
“Off the pitch he prepares himself well and that gives him the confidence. He then works beside that and you see his success on the pitch. He is such a graceful player, how he gets about and he is at that age where that hunger and mentality is there to get better and improve.”
Rodgers wants to boost his squad rather than allow it to get weaker – with wide man Nicolas Kuhn the only January addition so far. But he warned Celtic fans he is prepared to wait for his top targets.
Rodgers said: “It’s about getting the right players in. You can easily bring players in. But sometimes it takes a bit of time and patience. We’ve got the winger we wanted and there are some other positions we want to improve.
“If the players are available and we can do a deal, then great. If not we’ll move on to the summer. It will only be if the right players are not available.”
Rodgers is considering a striker but the pressure has eased with Kyogo left out of Japan’s squad for the Asian Cup. He said: “It’s an area we have to look at, we can’t ignore it.
“It’s the balance between bringing someone in to challenge while acknowledging that’s a difficult sell to someone when Kyogo has been fantastic here. Or is it a young player who comes in with potential to improve and get better.
“Those are the things that you think about, because it really is only for a short period of time that those guys will be missing. But, yeah, it’s all about availability.
“It’s also one that we have been looking at for a period of time and it would have really changed if Kyogo had gone away with Japan. That was our thinking process, that we would actually be left with no one. Him being here for virtually one game a week for a number of weeks changes the dynamic.”
Kuhn won’t be ready to face Buckie Thistle in the Scottish Cup tomorrow but is expected to be fit for Ross County next week – along with centre back Cameron Carter-Vickers. But Rodgers insisted the new wide man has the tools to be a major hit at Parkhead.
He said: “Quality isn’t always about money, you can have a quality signing who costs £600,000, it’s not always eight or nine million quid. There won’t be many quicker than him, but it’s about having the quality when you get there as well. He’ll be a really good option for us.”
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