Celtic braced for O’Riley bidding war as Inter lead Premier League giants

Robin Bairner

• 22 Dec 2023 14:26 GMT
• 3 min read

Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley has emerged as a January transfer target for Inter – but the Serie A side face competition from multiple Premier League clubs for the Denmark international.

The 23-year-old has enjoyed a standout campaign for Celtic to date, recording nine goals and five assists in 17 Scottish Premiership matches.

Sky Sports reports that this form has attracted interest from Serie A leaders Inter, who want to capture O’Riley on a loan deal with an obligation to buy in the summer.

While O’Riley has an Estimated Transfer Value of €13 million, Celtic are set to demand a record fee for the midfielder. This needs to eclipse the €29m fee that they recouped when they sold winger Jota to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad during the summer transfer window.

The midfielder has already been subject to interest from Leeds United in the summer, but a bid in the region of €11.5m was knocked back by the Scottish champions.

Off the back of a strong start to the season, his valuation has skyrocketed while the clubs interested in signing him have grown in stature.

Aston Villa and West Ham are two Premier League clubs that Sky report have watched O’Riley in action in the Champions League this season, while interest in the player also comes from the Eredivisie via PSV and also from Atletico Madrid, who were direct rivals to Brendan Rodgers’ side in the Champions League this season.

Celtic’s next big sale

O’Riley will be the next player to leave Celtic for big money, according to Sky Sports pundit Kris Boyd.

“Celtic have got this knack of bringing players in, giving them a platform to go and perform. They then go and move them on for big money,” Boyd said when speaking earlier this season.

“Matt O'Riley will be one of the next ones to go in terms of big money.

“Last season, everyone was raving about his assists, and rightly so, but there was always the doubt about whether he could add goals. He's doing that now.”