Celtic’s Matt O’Riley has been extremely impressive in the side’s midfield in the absence of injured Callum McGregor.
That is the view of former Ross County manager Stuart Kettlewell, who was speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Scottish Football Podcast.
McGregor suffered a knee injury in the Hoops’ Champions League group stage clash at RB Leipzig at the start of the month, ruling him out until after the World Cup.
That has resulted in O’Riley having to adapt his midfield position to cover for McGregor over the last few weeks.
And the six-cap Denmark U21 international has earned glowing praise from Kettlewell, who thinks he has exceeded expectations in the number six role.
He said: “I thought that Callum McGregor coming out of the team could have had a much bigger effect than it has done.
“But you look at the versatility of O’Riley to play as that six… I never expected he could have played that role as well as he does. He controls, he reads danger, he’s a good athlete, he gets about the pitch – every aspect of it.
“I’ve been quite amazed by how comfortable it’s been without Callum McGregor, because he looks like the one often that sets the standards that plays all the minutes and all the games.”
TIF Thoughts on Kettlewell’s comments…
We agree with Kettlewell and think that O’Riley has been fantastic in McGregor’s absence so far this season, and his £1.5m arrival from MK Dons in January is proving to be a stunning piece of business from Ange Postecoglou’s side.
The 21-year-old is proving perfectly capable of coping with playing in the midfield at the highest level, having earned himself an average SofaScore match rating of 7.15 for his Champions League performances so far this season – ranking him second-highest in Celtic’s European campaign.
Therefore, we are inclined to agree with Kettlewell and we fully expect the midfielder to continue and improve on his already impressive progress since joining the club at the start of the year.