Although Celtic were somewhat disappointed to draw against Atletico Madrid in the end last night, no one was unhappy with Matt O’Riley’s performance.
The midfielder, who is on course to be Celtic’s player of the season, put in another phenomenal display in Europe.
O’Riley looks to have taken his game to the next level under Brendan Rodgers this season and is thriving alongside the likes of Callum McGregor.
Sofa Score awarded O’Riley the highest rating of any player at Celtic Park last night and that was backed up by some impressive numbers.
The midfielder won six duels, made two interceptions and three tackles – and those were just his defensive stats.
O’Riley also made 70 touches, played two key passes and provided an assist for Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi against Atletico.
It was a remarkable evening for the Danish youth international who has been ‘outstanding’ all season long.
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Of course, O’Riley must now be attracting the attention of a lot of clubs across Europe.
However, Celtic will feel that they are in a strong position given the recent contract extension he signed.
O’Riley was the best player on the pitch when Celtic hosted Atletico
Celtic did play brilliantly at times against Atletico last night, leaving an odd feeling of disappointment despite drawing against a top side.
Moreover, Atletico manager Diego Simeone did see several things he loved about Celtic’s performance last night.
Simeone praised Celtic’s speed, dynamism and their ability to move the ball against his stubborn side.
And a lot of that credit does fall on Matt O’Riley’s door step.
Unfortunately, Celtic do now face an uphill battle to salvage any kind of qualification from their Champions League group.
Despite O’Riley’s strong performance against Atletico, Celtic missed out on a perhaps deserved three points that would have propelled them up the table.
Instead, Rodger’s side have just the one point in the group and will now have to achieve some historic results in the games to come.