‘He could have left’ - Celtic boss reacts to £30m decision which denied Leeds United £10m deal

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has revealed he snubbed Leeds United’s offer for Matt O’Riley in the summer as he felt he couldn’t lose another first-team star. The Hoops sold Carl Starfelt and Jota for around a combined £30million in the last window.

They were reluctant to cash in on one of their key midfielders and ended up keeping him beyond the deadline earlier this month. The former Denmark youth international helped the Glasgow giants win the Scottish Premiership last term under former manager Ange Postecoglou.

Leeds were keen on luring him to England following their relegation to the Championship. However, they had to look elsewhere for reinforcements under Daniel Farke.

Rodgers has opened up about the Whites’ pursuit of O’Riley and has said, as per the Scottish Sun: “It was an open conversation, and that’s what I’ve always had here with Michael Nicholson and the guys. I didn’t think we could afford to lose another starter and the club were very supportive on that. They were great.

“We had obviously lost Carl Starfelt and lost Jota, and we knew Cameron Carter-Vickers was going to be out for a while. I didn’t feel we could lose another one. But of course, that’s all on the player as well.

“If the player really wants to move, then I’m also a believer that if he doesn’t want to be here then don’t be here. I’ve got experience of that where you think you can keep them for another year. But they are not the same player if they really want to go.

“I never got that feeling at all from Matt. He is investing his time in development. He could have left here. With the greatest respect, he could have earned significantly more money by leaving. But that is not everything for him.

“Matt knows that I’m investing in him to help him become better. He still knows he’s got a bit to improve. And hopefully this part of the season is confirmation for him that I can still improve him.

“Certainly his value will increase in 12 months’ time. Of course we would love to keep him here and he still has a lot of development to go. But he is showing some great signs. He has a wonderful attitude and is ambitious, but ambitious for Celtic as well as himself. If we can tie him down for longer then all the better of course.”

O’Riley started his career at Fulham before moving to MK Dons in League One. Celtic then took him to Scotland in 2022 and he has since emerged on the radar of Leeds.