Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers may face a challenge to keep hold of one of his first-team men in January after it emerged that another club is now keeping a close eye on his situation, according to reports.
Celtic's tale of two contrasting draws in the space of a week
During midweek, Celtic produced an awe-inspiring performance in front of a raucous atmosphere at Parkhead to record a 2-2 draw against La Liga high-flyers Atletico Madrid, with goals from Kyogo Furuhashi and Luis Palma enough to secure a point in the Champions League despite being pegged back twice by strikes from Antoine Griezmann and Alvaro Morata.
Finally getting off the mark in Group E, Celtic boss Rodgers praised his side's efforts as they prolonged their hopes of securing European football after Christmas, saying: "That was a really good performance, but we just couldn't get the win. I don't think you can say they'll fly back to Spain not knowing they've had a tough game. They didn't create so much. Their equaliser was fantastic and shows the quality at this level."
He then added: "Our reaction in the game was superb, having the courage and the bravery to play. We showed we can compete with a top level team. We can create opportunities. We can play the game the way we want to play."
Despite this, Celtic returned to Scottish Premiership action away to Hibernian at Easter Road on Saturday and a sluggish performance against a stubborn opponent could only yield a 0-0 draw in Edinburgh, with tired legs playing their part in a low-key affair.
Nevertheless, Rodgers commended his side for their points total in the first ten matches of the Scottish Premiership campaign and urged them to rediscover their best form against St Mirren at Parkhead on Wednesday, stating: "We've played ten games now. We've had eight wins and two draws and we've been to every ground in the country and did well in the main. The effort and commitment was there; now we need to recover and get ready for Wednesday."
Celtic's next five fixtures – all competitions
Competition
Opponent
Venue
Scottish Premiership
St Mirren (H)
Celtic Park
Scottish Premiership
Ross County (A)
Global Energy Stadium
Champions League
Atletico Madrid (A)
Wanda Metropolitano
Scottish Premiership
Aberdeen (H)
Celtic Park
Scottish Premiership
Motherwell (H)
Celtic Park
Celtic transfer update on Matt O'Riley
According to a transfer update from Football Insider, Celtic midfielder Matt O'Riley is on the radar of Brighton & Hove Albion, who have sent scouts to watch the Danish playmaker in action regularly as Roberto De Zerbi assesses his options in the engine room. From their observations, the Premier League high-flyers are believed to be hugely impressed by his exploits and have set their sights on a move.
The Seagulls are among a host of clubs that have watched the 22-year-old in action this term as he continues to go from strength to strength under the tutelage of Rodgers.
Adding goals to his game, O'Riley has gone on to notch six strikes and four assists from 14 appearances across all competitions for Celtic this season (Matt O'Riley stats – Transfermarkt).
Commended for his "wonderful attitude" by Celtic boss Rodgers earlier this year, O'Riley has taken his game to a whole different stratosphere in 2023/24 and, unsurprisingly, clubs from south of the border have started to take notice of his consistent form.