Aston Villa target Matt O’Riley could now be ‘next John McGinn’

Aston Villa target Matt O’Riley could now be ‘next John McGinn’

Matt O’Riley has drawn comparisons to Aston Villa skipper John McGinn ahead of potentially joining him in the Midlands

Aston Villa are mulling over whether to test Celtic’s resolve by making a bid for Matt O’Riley after sending scouts to watch him in action.

 Unai Emery is facing competition from a host of clubs as he aims to get a deal over the line for the Denmark international.

 Transfer insider Dean Jones believes O’Riley boasts similarities to Villa fan favourite John McGinn.

Aston Villa target Matt O’Riley boasts similar traits to captain John McGinn and would fit in ‘very well’ at Villa Park, but transfer insider Dean Jones has told GIVEMESPORT whether head coach Unai Emery will be able to lure him away from Celtic next month.

Having shown ambition by shattering their club-record outlay and forking out £51.9million in order to acquire Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen ahead of the campaign getting underway, the Villans have been among the Premier League’s surprise packages and launched an unexpected title bid.

Emery, who has led Villa into the last 16 of the Europa Conference League thanks to guiding them to four wins in the group stage, will be handed another opportunity to splash the cash when the winter window opens for business at the turn of the year.

Pat Nevin says what everyone else is thinking about Kyogo Furuhashi after Celtic beat Rangers

Kyogo Furuhashi. Write him off at your peril! 

What a player. What a man. And what a goalscorer he is proving to be for Celtic.

For the seventh time, Kyogo Furuhashi stepped up and dispatched Rangers, as Brendan Rodgers’ side recorded a 2-1 win in the Glasgow derby on Saturday.

Pat Nevin was at Parkhead watching the action unfold and he admitted that it was ‘worth’ going along just to watch the ‘genius’ of Kyogo Furuhashi alone, as he told BBC Radio 5 Live Sport.

The Japan star has had some memorable moments in Celtic colours, including scoring crucial final-winning goals.

But his strike yesterday might just prove to be one of his best because it was out of this world and Pat Nevin touched upon it by labelling it ‘unstoppable’.

Even though goalkeeper Jack Butland has been lauded for his performances in Rangers colours this season, he could just get a hand to it as he watched it ping into the top corner.

This was Kyogo Furuhashi at his best and a key reason why he is ‘so loved’ by the Celtic supporters.

“To be honest, Kyogo didn’t do much on the ball today,” said Nevin. “He usually makes all the runs. But he just wasn’t getting involved.

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“But when the ball fell to him. That was the crucial moment. About 20 yards out. Just drops his shoulder, and goes to his left, most expect him to go to his right, but he doesn’t. And he has curled that ball, with power, right into the top corner. It is unstoppable. It’s a beautiful goal.

“He is so loved around here. Deserves to win any game and eventually it does win the game. I suppose that is the thing, quality strikers make the difference.

“Furuhashi last season, a lot of the times, he was the difference between Celtic and everyone else. Great help behind. But, once again, he has done it against Rangers. He loves doing it in these situations. Even if he had a quiet game, that one moment of genius was worth coming along for.”

Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images

Kyogo Furuhashi steps up again

Bad form, what bad form?! A lot has been made of what the 28-year-old has been producing under Brendan Rodgers this season.

Yes, he has been off-colour on occasions, but many inside the four walls of Celtic knew that it was a moment of when Kyogo would get back to his best and not if.

This shouldn’t be a surprise because many saw this coming. Kyogo has been looking for that spark again and he has now found it.

And whilst he only has eight goals from 21 Scottish Premiership matches, expect him now to motor forward and start climbing that top scorer charts.

Celtic ‘move forward’ in Prospect talks after summer scouting missions

The Celtic January transfer rumour mill has thrown the name of Wolverhampton Wanderers forward, Fabio Silva into the hat.

The 21-year-old was once a £35.6 million club-record transfer for Wolves, but now he is struggling to come off the bench for the bottom-half English Premier League side.

With Brendan Rodgers wanting attacking reinforcements next month at Celtic, the name of Fabio Silva has been mentioned, as reported by TEAMtalk.

Andy Walker has shared that in Brendan Rodgers’ first spell at Celtic, the one-time wonderkid was linked with the club, as he told Go Radio.

But given his struggles at Wolves, it now seems like he will be heading for the exit door in January.

Approach made: Celtic ask about move to sign “highly talented” £15M striker, they’ ve had a reply

The Scottish Premiership side are looking to bolster their attacking ranks in January.

Celtic have made an approach to ask about a deal to bring one of their long-term targets to the Scottish Premiership, according to a fresh report that has emerged.

Hoops eyeing Kvistgaarden

Ahead of January, Brendan Rodgers will be assessing his options in the market to see if there are any players he could strengthen his squad with. One recently identified is Brondby forward Mathias Kvistgaarden if claims are to be believed.

The Bhoys are reportedly preparing an improved offer for the striker having seen their opening bid turned down over the summer, but should a deal for him fail to come to fruition for whatever reason, the hierarchy appear to have alternative centre-forward targets.

Sturm Graz’s Szymon Wlodarczyk only put pen to paper at his club during the previous window from Gornik Zabrze where he’s so far made 28 appearances to date (Transfermarkt – Wlodarczyk statistics), but he was on the board’s radar long before his most recent move.

Back in January, Mark Hendry first claimed that Poland’s youth international was of interest to the green and white stripes, though a switch hasn’t yet taken place, hence why he moved elsewhere, and it still sounds like the 20-year-old won’t be making the trip to Glasgow anytime soon despite new efforts.

Celtic submit enquiry for Wlodarczyk

According to Football Scotland, Celtic have asked about signing Wlodarczyk again next month, but after learning his price tag in a response from Sturm Graz, have decided that they couldn’t afford to complete a deal in January.

“Football Scotland can also reveal Celtic reached out to Sturm Graz in an effort to revisit another former transfer target, Szymon Wlodarczyk, but were told his valuation has sky-rocketed to around £15m which would financially be out of their reach in January.”

Wlodarczyk is a “highly talented” striker

Since joining Sturm Graz, Wlodarczyk has racked up 11 contributions (nine goals and two assists) from 28 appearances, displaying how prolific he can be in the final third, and he’s able to pose a constant threat to the opposition’s defence in the attacking areas of the pitch.

Sponsored by Adidas, Walbrzych’s native has recorded 32 shots over the course of the current campaign which is more than any other of his fellow teammates, highlighting what a standout performer he is in front of the net compared to his peers (FBRef – Sturm Graz statistics).

Standing at 6 foot 2, Rodgers’ target is also able to provide a real physical presence up top with his height, with his ability to win aerial duels making him a real handful for any backline to deal with, alongside how dangerous he can be with the ball at his feet.

Described by football scout Jacek Kulig, Wlodarczyk is a “highly talented” player with an extremely bright future ahead of him, but with Celtic not set to splash the cash to get their long-term target in the coming weeks, it could prove to be a blow considering the positive impact that he may have been able to make.

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Chloe is an experienced football journalist and podcaster having worked in the sports media industry for the past three years.

Combining her love of the beautiful game with a passion for writing, Chloe started out creating and editing articles for Our MFC before going on to cover the Euro 2020 tournament with Overtime Sports Online.

In March 2022, Chloe was selected to join the academy team at Snack Media and later secured the role of freelance writer for The Transfer Tavern before moving over to the company’s flagship site, Football FanCast.

Chloe is also a huge Stoke City supporter having been a season ticket holder at the Bet365 Stadium for over a decade.

Villa in battle to land O’Riley

Villa have been monitoring O’Riley closely and sent scouts to watch him in Champions League action ahead of potentially testing Celtic’s resolve with a January bid, according to Sky Sports, but they would need to part with more than £25million if they want to have any chance of striking a deal.

The report suggests West Ham United, PSV Eindhoven and Atletico Madrid have also been keeping tabs on the central midfielder – who has been at Parkhead since completing a £1.5million switch from Milton Keynes Dons in January 2022 – while Inter Milan are attempting to steal a march on fellow suitors by preparing to launch an initial loan offer which includes an obligation to buy.

Celtic will be desperate to keep O’Riley on their books as he could play a critical role in fending off Old Firm rivals Rangers in the race for the Scottish Premiership title, and they showed they are unwilling to lower their demands when they snubbed a bid from Leeds United during the closing stages of the summer transfer window.

Matt O’Riley’s season in numbers

Appearances

26

Goals

9

Assists

8

Yellow cards

2

Sent off

0

Statistics according to Transfermarkt – Correct as of 29/12/2023

Inter are not the only Serie A side to have taken a serious interest in the Denmark international as Bologna also tried their luck by putting a proposal on the table in August, only for his current employers to reject their advances.

Villa could face additional competition in their pursuit of O’Riley as domestic rivals Tottenham Hotspur, Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion have also been linked as they formulate their plans for the winter transfer window.

In a potential boost for Emery, respected journalist Jones recently told GIVEMESPORT that the 23-year-old will eventually be tempted to test himself in the Premier League after enjoying a hugely successful spell north of the border.

Dean Jones update – Matt O’Riley

Jones believes natural comparisons can be drawn between O’Riley and Villa fan favourite McGinn, who has gone on to make more than 200 appearances for the Midlands outfit since sealing a switch from Hibernian close to five-and-a-half years ago, and the Celtic talisman would be a shrewd addition to Emery’s squad.

But the transfer insider fears the Spanish tactician may be frustrated in his pursuit as, having already lifted silverware on four occasions during his stint at Parkhead, the Fulham academy graduate is expected to remain loyal to Brendan Rodgers’ side.

Jones told GIVEMESPORT:

Emery aware of Iling-Junior price tag

Villa have registered their interest in Juventus outcast Samuel Iling-Junior, according to Football Insider, and the Serie A giants are willing to sanction a move to the Midlands if a £17million bid is put on the table when the transfer window reopens.

The report suggests the Villans have asked for information on the 20-year-old, who has been limited to just 165 minutes of action this season, but they are facing competition from Tottenham after it has emerged that he is keen to leave the Allianz Stadium.

Reputable reporter Paul Brown recently told GIVEMESPORT that Iling-Junior will be available at the season’s midway point as he is not in the forefront of Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri’s plans, leading to Villa links surfacing.

Emery raiding former club ‘would make sense’ for Aston Villa

Emery could see the coming weeks as an ideal opportunity to pounce as the winger is set to enter the final 18 months of his contract, which allows him to pocket just over £10,500-per-week, and the Italian heavyweights will not want to run the risk of his value decreasing.

But that may also be used to Tottenham’s advantage as he was earmarked as a top target by boss Ange Postecoglou last month and key members behind the scenes feel he has bags of potential, increasing the likelihood of a winter swoop.