In midweek he picked up the official UEFA Man of the Match award from Celtic’s Champions League draw with Shakhtar Donetsk but it remains to be seen how impressed Kasper Hjulmand has been. As we build up to the excitement for the most important event of the year, plenty of information and stats about this tournament can be found in digital media, as well free World Cup betting offers on comparison platforms such as oddschecker.
When qualification for Qatar was sealed last autumn it is unlikely that a 20-year-old with MK Dons in League One was in his thoughts but since the turn of the year O’Riley’s profile has been transformed.
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou seems to be a sound judge of a player, seeking reinforcements during the January transfer window he turned to O’Riley, triggering a £1.5m buy-out fee on his MK Dons deal to add to his three signings from the J-League.
Almost instantly O’Riley was making his mark. On his debut away to Hearts he played a key role as Celtic overturned their opening day defeat at Tynecastle, a fortnight later he was outstanding as Postecoglou’s side moved into top spot in the SPFL Premiership with a resounding 4-0 win in the Glasgow derby. Neither Celtic or O’Riley have looked back.
Ever the realist, and despite caps for England at u-16 and u-18 level, O’Riley flagged up his Danish eligibility, backed up by regular summer holidays with his mother’s family.
Since his u-21 debut at the end of last season the Celtic midfielder has made six appearances for the Danes with two goals to advance his hopes of a place in the main squad for Qatar.
Revealing details of discussions with Hjulmand about O’Riley, u-21 boss Jesper Sorensen said:
“Kasper and I always discuss the players we have in the under-21s, and Matt is one of the highest profile players in our squad.
“I think he has been doing very well. He has given us more than I ever expected.
“I know he is very ambitious, but coming into a new scenario with a whole new team, I think he has given us more than I thought he would and that has been very good.
“I have spoken to Kasper about Matt and he is also following him. Matt has been progressing with the team all along since the first time he came.
“It was difficult for Matt at first I think – though he might disagree – coming into a new environment where he had to learn new things and speak Danish, but he has such commitment that he wants us to speak Danish to him.
“That helps him to learn much faster and catch up much faster, but he just wanted us to do things as normal.
“He has blended in very well with the team and the guys, and he is clearly a very good player. And he is a very good person as well.
“He is so committed to his football, but he is also a very good teammate and he wants to help his teammates.
“He is very open minded, and I can only praise Matt for what he has done, coming into a team that he doesn’t know and playing for Denmark. He has been a great representative for Denmark so far.”
International managers are currently checking over injuries and fitness at the moment as much as form.
If O’Riley is in contention for a World Cup call up he’ll have Celtic’s Champions League campaign to thank in part for his promotion.
Although Postecoglou’s side won’t be involved in Europe in the new year they competed and performed well in their group with their Danish prospect picking up the Man of the Match award ahead of the coveted Mudryk who scored for the Ukrainians.
If it isn’t to be this time for O’Riley the projectory of his career suggests that it is only a matter of time before he is picking up full international recognition.
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