HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO
O’Riley is keen to add bite to his game as he adapts to ‘McGregor’ role at heart of Celtic midfield
IT’S BEEN nearly a month since Callum McGregor addressed the Celtic huddle, yet his words continue to ring loud and clear in the ears of Matt O’Riley. Asked to fill in for the convalescing captain in the midfield holding role, O’Riley has been adapting to the demands of playing midfield anchor in Ange Postecoglou’s relentlessly attacking team.
Previously deployed there at MK Dons, the 21-year-old stresses that he is quite comfortable operating deep. Nevertheless, it’s one thing to do it in England’s League One, quite another to play pivot in the Bernabeu.
That’s the task facing O’Riley on Wednesday evening as Celtic round off a frustrating Champions League campaign away to the tournament holders Real Madrid.
‘I’ve been speaking to Cal since he has been injured,’ says O’Riley. ‘Before the first game, I asked him for tips, where I need to be and stuff like that. He has done it for a long time, so having someone like him to speak to and really get up to speed quickly has helped me.’
At ease in possession and blessed with a wide range of passing, O’Riley also has the physical stature to adapt to the anchor role.
What he perhaps lacks is a streak of cynicism. A few days before he sustained his knee injury in the away defeat to RB Leipzig, McGregor was red-carded for hauling down Motherwell’s Ross Tierney as he prepared to advance on goal late in a tight league encounter at Parkhead.
No such intervention was made to stop Shakhtar Donetsk danger man Mykhaylo Mudryk as he burst forth and produced an explosive equaliser for the Ukrainians last Tuesday night.
James McCarthy or Oliver Abildgaard may possess the defensive instincts to make such a move but neither has been trusted to start a game this season.
Aggressive in how they close space and press the opposition, the likes of O’Riley, Reo Hatate and even David Turnbull are not so ruthless when it comes to making the tactical fouls that might stop an attack at source.
O’Riley admits he does need to add a more destructive side to his game.
‘I have to adapt in certain areas but I have enjoyed learning a new position,’ he says. ‘It is quite different in terms of the defensive side. Before, I was probably more aggressive in my pressing whereas now I am more in the middle of everything.
‘I am adding new stuff to my game, I am having to be more aggressive in tackles and stuff like that. I like it. I probably get more of the ball there, I am probably further away from goal.
‘I had four or five shots against Shakhtar, so I have still been able to get up there create stuff.
‘It is another position and one in which I can help the team. I feel more than comfortable with being able to do that. I am playing against better players, I have learned I have to be crisper with certain passes, your touch has to be better, you need to be sharper in your decision-making.
‘This is my favourite football. I enjoy this the most. I enjoy playing against the best players because that is what improves you the most.
‘I am in good shape physically. It is probably the best I have felt in general. But regardless of who we play, I think we have enough quality through our midfield. There is enough depth there.’
O’Riley’s own performance was awarded with the official man of the match award, yet he could barely summon the enthusiasm to pose for his post-match picture after pouring so much into the match for so little reward.
Postecoglou’s decision to deploy Kyogo Furuhashi as a No 10 essentially consigned O’Riley and Hatate to a gruelling two-man shift against Shakhtar. He would encourage both to take heart.
‘For the majority of our players, it’s their first time in the Champions League,’ says the manager. ‘If you stacked them up against the Shakhtar players, even their young players have more appearances at that level.
‘We have talented young footballers who want to improve and they’re not afraid of tackling the very best.
‘Matt and Reo have both been outstanding. In just 12 months, they have taken their game to a level where they’re competitive against the best. In another 12 months, I’m sure you’ll see another level in them.
‘The thing about Reo is that he never loses self-belief. You saw that on Tuesday night. If he makes a mistake, he just gets on with it.
‘He goes again and tries to be as creative as he can. We encourage that, we give players licence to be brave with their passing and their running.
‘Sometimes it doesn’t work out, especially at Champions League level. But they know we won’t be critical internally, irrespective of what’s going on externally.
‘Because we want them to be the best they can be. The only way they will get there is by being brave and courageous, instead of making the safe passes.’
Postecoglou continues: ‘I don’t think cynical is the right word, we just have to be more focused.
‘It was a really poor goal we lost against Shakhtar.
‘It was a world-class finish but, from our perspective, we lacked concentration at that moment.
‘We had a set-piece but once that broke down our defensive structure was poor.
‘You’ve got to go through those experiences and feel that pain.
‘We lost focus and discipline for a second and top talent will punish you at Champions League level.
‘The players and us as a group will learn a lot from that.’
Beyond their susceptibility to the counter-attack, the obvious flaw in Celtic’s Champions League armoury has been the lack of a very different kind of ruthlessness.
Committed to attack in each of their matches against Real Madrid, Shakhtar and RB Leipzig, they have registered 68 goal attempts in just five games.
A return of three goals and two draws has been insufficient.
‘It is frustrating,’ adds O’Riley. ‘I just feel sorry for the fans because I think we have given them a lot of really good football — but just not enough. There is a lot to learn.
‘At the end of the day, we have two points. We have shown we are capable of playing at this level and going toe-to-toe with teams. It is just that cutting edge we lack and need to improve on.
‘Whether it is being more ruthless at the training ground each day just setting really high standards, I am not sure.’
Capped at Under-21 level by Denmark, O’Riley has been named in head coach Kasper Hjulmand’s provisional 55-man squad ahead of the Qatar World Cup.
Celtic’s final Group F fixture at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night provides a timely opportunity to seal his place at the big time — but first he must help his team secure the results at the historically-tricky venue of Livingston this lunchtime.
‘That would be cool, but first the Tony Macaroni,’ quips O’Riley.
‘It is such a contrast but Livingston is not an easy game. It is astro and probably 11 men behind the ball, a different sort of challenge but one we are going to have to be ready for.
‘Two completely different type of opposition and different levels.
‘However, facing Livingston is just as important. We need to win that game in order to be back in the Champions League, so that makes me hungry.’