Southampton bid £20m for Celtic's Matt O'Riley as Russell Martin eyes reunion

Southampton are preparing a £20million bid for Matt O'Riley, talkSPORT understands.

He Celtic The midfielder is being considered as a signing following Saints' promotion to the Premier League.

Russell Martin is interested in adding quality to his team, something he knows O'Riley, who has made two appearances for the Denmark national team, will offer.

The 23-year-old was signed by Martin while he was in charge of Gifts of the MKscoring three goals in 23 appearances before Martin moved to Swansea that summer.

O'Riley scored ten goals in 54 appearances for MK Dons before securing a £1.5 million move to Celtic in January 2022.

In September 2022, Celtic star O'Riley praised former Rangers player Martin, saying he had a huge impact on his career: “He was a massive influence on me at MK. He's the first manager who really understands me as a player and, more importantly, as a person.

He added: “Russell is happy for me. He tries to tune in to every game, even though he is Swansea coach.”

Since then, the midfielder has scored 27 goals and provided 34 assists in 121 games for Celtic.

In those two and a half years, O'Riley has helped the Bhoys to three Scottish Premier League titles, two Scottish Cups and a League Cup, as well as making 12 Champions League appearances.

Southampton have already been busy this summer, making two signings ahead of the new season.

2

Adam Lallana arrived on a free transfer after leaving Brighton, while Taylor Harwood-Bellis has joined in a £20m dealThis was sparked by their success in the play-off final against Leeds at Wembley.

The south coast club returns to the Premier League after just one season away after being relegated in the 2022/23 campaign.