“Me, Carl and Jota were quite close”; Matt O’Riley addresses Celtic transfer exits

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Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley is experiencing his closest friends leaving the club but reckons change is part of football and has to be embraced.

Jota left for Saudi Arabia earlier in the summer and another of O’Riley’s strongest dressing room allies is on the verge of a switch to La Liga side Celta Vigo.

Carl Starfelt’s impending Celtic exit has moved quickly over the weekend ever since he was named on the bench for Saturday’s match against Ross County. Brendan Rodgers confirmed a deal could happen quickly and the Bhoys are reported to be in final negotiations on a £5m transfer.

O’Riley is happy for his friend but has admitted he’ll be missed from a personal standpoint.

The midfielder said [Daily Record]: “Change is part of football, it’s part of life. Especially at a club like Celtic where the demands to play are so high. We have brought Maik [Nawrocki] in, we have Cam [Carter-Vickers], Scalesy [Liam Scales], we have Welshy [Stephen Welsh], we have a lot of depth in that position.

“From my perspective, Carl has been a really good servant to the club and I think we should appreciate that. I think he has been a very, very important player. He will leave the club having had a really good time here and played some really good football.

“He has won five trophies here in two years, so that’s not bad. I am happy for him and I hope he does really well if he does move, but we have a really good group and it’s football.

“Me, Carl and Jota were quite close. So the trio has been destroyed. Then there was one. But I have enough friends here, it’s fine. I’m not going to feel sorry for myself!”

O’Riley is spot on with his assessment of his situation and fans will need to have a similarly philosophical view. It’s never nice seeing effective performers move on, but this is the modern game now. It’ll be rare for us to hold on to top talents for more than two or three years.

Starfelt has contributed well and has now indicated he wants to leave, for playing and personal reasons. Celtic can’t really stand in his way – the manager needs 100% committed performers. So it’s all the best to Carl.

Now the big task is replacing him and ensuring that Rodgers has enough strength and depth in defence for our all-competition quest this season.

In other news, The new Celtic song that got an airing vs Ross County; tune and lyrics.