Over the years, Celtic has established a solid reputation for nurturing young, gifted players before turning a significant profit and selling them to European teams.
From the Neil Lennon era at Parkhead, players like Fraser Forster, Victor Wanyama, Gary Hooper, and Virgil van Dijk—who signed with Southampton for £13 million in 2015—all made significant moves elsewhere.
More recently, in the summer of 2019, Kieran Tierney completed an incredible £25 million transfer from the Hoops to Premier League powerhouse Arsenal, making him the most expensive Scottish player in history.
That amount was equaled by the Bhoys’ acquisition of Portuguese attacker Jota for £25 million in the summer of 2023 from Saudi Pro League team Al Ittihad.
These sales demonstrate that the Hoops have a history of reaping large financial rewards for their players’ abilities, which implies that they have fostered an atmosphere where players can flourish and win championships for the team.
The most recent example of their outstanding performance in that regard is the recent transfer of center midfielder Matt O’Riley to Brighton & Hove Albion, a Premier League team.
Celtics’ incredible Matt O’Riley
At the beginning of 2022, English-born sensation MK Dons was signed by former Celtic head coach Ange Postecoglou for a rumored sum of £1.5 million.
The 21-year-old center midfielder made 16 appearances in the Scottish Premiership, returning with four goals and three assists, demonstrating how quickly he adjusted to Scottish game.
At a cost of barely £1.5 million, the midfield maestro made an early effect for the team as a goal scorer and creator, proving right away that the Hoops had struck gold.
In his first full season under Postecoglou, O’Riley followed that up with four goals and fourteen assists in 52 games in all competitions for the Scottish giants.
Then, in 49 appearances across all competitions for Celtic under Brendan Rodgers last season, the 23-year-old sensation delivered an incredible 19 goals and 18 assists, with the majority of those goal contributions coming in the Premiership.
From a center midfield position, the Danish international posed a serious threat to the Northern Irish head coach in both goal-scoring and goal-creation during the 2023–24 season, as the table above illustrates.
