How the Celtic players reacted to Matt O’Riley’s goal for Brighton’s win over Manchester City

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Celtic hero Matt O’Riley enjoyed a Premier League debut he will remember for a long time.

It has been a difficult few months for O’Riley because he suffered a long-term injury on his Brighton debut in the EFL Cup in August and only returned to action on Saturday.

And what a return it was for the 23-year-old!

Every Celtic fan had a smile on their face when O’Riley came off the bench to make his long-awaited Premier League debut.

To top it off, he scored and netted the winning goal as Brighton inflicted a fourth defeat in a row on Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.

In typical O’Riley fashion, he took the ball brilliantly when put through on goal and showcased his composure by slotting the ball past Ederson.

Celtic fans saw that week in and week out with O’Riley, and now Brighton supporters will enjoy his genius on the ball in the coming years.

Celtic players react to Matt O’Riley’s winning goal for Brighton against Manchester City

As Rodgers returned to the club last summer, the man who stood above everyone and helped the club towards the double was O’Riley.

You can sense his popularity, not just with the supporters, but with his own teammates because they showed it on Instagram.

O’Riley posted on IG ‘missed playing football’, with several of his former teammates from Parkhead reacting in the comments section.

Gustaf Lagerbielke, who is on on-loan at FC Twente, wrote ‘missed watching you play football’, whilst Luis Palma sent a fire, raised hands and a heart emoji to the player.

Stephen Welsh did the same, with Alistair Johnston writing ‘buzzing for you bro’ added with a green heart emoji.

But they weren’t the only ones, as many Celtic fans filled the comments section with messages of joy and how delighted they are for the player.

Alan Shearer delighted for O’Riley after early injury

O’Riley’s summer transfer away from Celtic was expected, it was just a case of where he would go and who he would join.

There was a lot of off-field noise, and the player in question just put his head down and got his job done, before Brighton came knocking and he moved away.

But to be on the end of a horror tackle moments into your Brighton debut would have been difficult for the player.

Yet, you could argue that it has been worth the wait because, as Alan Shearer touched upon on Match of the Day, that goal-winning moment was for him.

“What a moment there for Matt O’Riley,” said Shearer. “He got injured very, very early on in his Brighton career. Got his goal and he can celebrate with the fans.”