Former Celtic star Matt O’Riley has shown he still holds a deep affection for the club, sharing a photo on social media of himself wearing a Celtic top alongside some of his former teammates.
With the international break providing a brief pause in domestic action, O’Riley took the opportunity to meet up with old friends under the sun.
Pictured with current Celtic players James Forrest, Callum McGregor, and Stephen Welsh, the group also included summer signing Luke McCowan.
Now plying his trade at Brighton & Hove Albion, O’Riley has had an eventful start to life in the Premier League.
A serious injury on his debut initially threatened to derail his season, but he returned in dramatic fashion, scoring a stunning winner against Manchester City.
Despite moving on, the 23-year-old midfielder remains grateful for his time at Celtic and recently reflected on the unique challenges of playing for the Glasgow giants.
Speaking on Brighton’s official podcast, O’Riley said:
“Respectfully, the pressures of playing at Celtic are for most people unimaginable. It is not easy to win every game of football regardless of who you are playing against. If you have got 11 men behind the ball who are well organised sometimes it is difficult to score.
“The longer the game goes on, the anxiety builds up in the crowd. And you just need to learn to be able to accept that but also just somehow block it out and stay focused. To do that every single game is really tiring, you know—mentally and physically—to sustain it as well.
“Anyone who is able to play at Celtic for a long time, like James Forrest and Callum McGregor, to have that kind of relentless mentality…it is genuinely tiring. I have so much respect for them to do it over and over again, 60 games a season.”