Despite competition from Atalanta, Everton, and Southampton, Leicester City is putting up a strong fight to sign Celtics standout Matt O’Riley, as TEAMtalk can disclose.
Born in London, O’Riley attended the Fulham Academy before joining MK Dons and eventually arriving to Celtic in January 2022. The midfielder, who can play in any of the No. 6, No. 8 and No. 10 positions, made a fantastic business move when he initially signed for Celtic in January 2022 for £1.5 million.
Since then, O’Riley has established himself as one of the top players in the Scottish Premiership and possibly the most vital player for Celtic.
The left-footed wizard helped the Hoops achieve a league and cup double with an extremely outstanding 19 goals and 18 assists in 49 games for Celtic last season.
Because he is entitled to represent Denmark through his mother’s side, O’Riley believed he had done enough to force his way into the squad for Euro 2024. However, the 23-year-old just missed the cut.
Since then, O’Riley has made the decision that he wants to make a significant transfer this summer in order to increase his visibility and position himself to play a key role for Denmark in the future.
After multiple rounds of negotiations between Atalanta and Celtic on a potential trade, Leicester entered the race.
Leicester transfers: Matt O’Riley a key target
Although Everton and Southampton have also been mentioned as possible suitors, Leicester is now in the lead to sign him.
The fact that the player is eager to test out the Premier League next gives Leicester a significant advantage against Atalanta.
The potential move of O’Riley from Celtic to Leicester may also cause a decline in the transfer record. Before letting their great player go, Celtic want more than £25 million, according to TEAMtalk.
Kieran Tierney and Jota, who each left Celtic in separate £25 million transactions, presently share the record for the most costly exit in the Scottish Premiership. However, O’Riley might soon surpass that number.
If Leicester prevails in the competition for the 6′ 2″ star, he will probably take Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s spot in the team. Earlier in the transfer season, Dewsbury-Hall was on the verge of joining Brighton, but Chelsea moved quickly to acquire him for a reported £30 million.
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