The close season brings the inevitable transfer talk which, in the case of Celtic, was always going to be the case.
With Brendan Rodgers looking to strengthen his team for the upcoming Champions League as well as defending his Scottish Premiership crown, there is likely to be plenty of incomings at Paradise in the summer.
However, there will be outgoings to contend with as well. Some are wanted and needed, others will likely be down to other clubs looking to court some of Celtic’s best players away from Parkhead.
And one of those that could be tempted is Celtic hero, Matt O’Riley.
O’Riley one of Atletico Madrid’s transfer ‘priorities’
Every Celtic fan is well aware of Atletico’s interest in O’Riley. The Danish international has had a phenomenal season both domestically and in Europe as he helped the club pick up another two pieces of silverware this season.
Atletico tested Celtic’s resolve in the January window with a cheeky bid for the 23-year-old. But the club stood firm and batted it away.
And whilst the Hoops midfielder admitted that Atletico’s interest did affect his form, it seems being rebuffed in January hasn’t affected the La Liga giants’ resolve.
That’s according to Sky Sports’, Rudy Galletti, who tweeted out this update on Atleti’s interest last night on X.
Many Celtic fans would have hoped that the Spaniards’ interest might have called four months on from Celtic rejecting their initial bid.
But it seems like O’Riley is one of their top targets. I discussed on this site why the Celtic fans might not need to worry about their hero leaving this summer.
Having another crack at the new-look Champions League might be enough to tempt O’Riley to hand around one more season.
However, with Atletico in the competition next season, if they do back up their apparent interest with another bid this summer, the temptation of playing in one of the best leagues in Europe may just be too much to say no to for a second time.