Celtic

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Callum McGregor says keeping Matt O'Riley would be a huge boost to Celtic.

O'Riley has been the subject of heavy speculation during the window after a stand-out season for the Glasgow club.

"It's something we can’t control," McGregor said of the speculation.

"The guys that are linked are happy and training well. All we can ask as a group of players is that we treat each other with respect and give our maximum on the training pitch.

"Of course you want to keep your best players and naturally they will attract attention.

"I don't want to influence him [Matt O'Riley] either way. I don't want him to think I have an agenda.

"He's been fantastic for us and I'm here to help him if he needs anything, but, to be honest, he's been fantastic in the way he has dealt with it.

"He can hold his head high with the way he has conducted himself.

"If we can keep him, for sure that will help the group."

Brighton have agreed a deal in principle for Celtic midfielder Matt O'Riley, setting a new record transfer fee received by a Scottish club, which stands at £25m. (Sky Sports)

Matt O'Riley won't be risked as Celtic visit St Mirren on Sunday, with a £25m fee, plus £5m in add-ons, agreed with Brighton. (Scottish Sun)

There will be no add-ons included in the deal to take Matt O'Riley to Brighton but £25m comes close to the figure Celtic have been demanding. (Daily Mail)

Celtic will resume negotiations for Mateusz Bogusz after the Polish midfielder's club Los Angeles FC play Sunday's final Leagues Cup final against Columbus Crew. (Anthony Joseph)

Celtic have made an offer for Lyon teenager Mahamadou Diawara, with the midfielder looking for regular game time. (Nabil Djellit)

Serie A club Lecce have made a loan with option-to-buy bid for Celtic centre-back Gustaf Lagerbielke, who is also wanted by Heerenveen in the Netherlands. (Anthony Joseph)

Click here to read Saturday's Scottish football gossip in full.

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Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says he will "continue to push" for high quality additions with just over a week left in the summer transfer window.

Rodgers has brought in goalkeepers Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo, in addition to permanent moves for last season's loanees Paulo Bernardo and Adam Idah.

The Northern Irishman has been clear he wants more additions as he pushes to compete in Europe as well as domestically, and says the club might have to push the boat out in order to bring in the required standard of player.

"We would all love to buy a player for one or two million and move them for £30m," he said.

"Every club in the world would love to do that, but sometimes you have to pay a bit more to gain the extra quality that's needed.

"If you're always in that [£1-2m] bracket, there are more misses than hits. This is a massive club, it's still a huge draw and we're ambitious to be the best we can.

"We have resources that we can get the level of player that can help us. I'm not one to say 'only £7-8m players succeed', but I've seen it long enough to understand what it takes to get that extra little bit. That's something I'll continue to push."

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Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has been talking to the media before his side's Premiership clash against St Mirren on Sunday.

Here are the best bits from his press conference:

• Says he wasn't surprised to see Kyogo linked with Manchester City because he's "a wonderful player", but stressed how speculation is the norm at this time of year and insists there is "nothing new to add".

• The Northern Irishman joked he thought he might be preparing for a five-a-side game this weekend given the amount of players being linked with moves away from the club.

• Midfielder Matt O'Riley - who is the subject of interest from Brighton - has trained with the club all week, who Rodgers described as the "consummate professional".

• Insists he and the club are "clear in what we need to do" in the transfer market and described the coming week as "very big" for Celtic.

• Says the ambition is still very much to make strides in Europe, and thought Celtic were "close" in several Champions League games last season.

• Rodgers was asked about the SFA report on the lack of opportunities for young players in Scotland. He thinks the league is too small, which leads to a "cutthroat" nature, and spoke about how young players at Celtic have to be "patient".

• Expecting a tough test against St Mirren, and praised the work Stephen Robinson has done to get the Buddies into Europe.

For the chasing pack, Celtic's early form is ominous.

While there were a few blips at the beginning of last term, this time Brendan Rodgers' side appear a well oiled machine, cantering to wins against Kilmarnock and Hibs and seeing off the latter opponents again in the League Cup.

Having missed chunks of the previous campaign, Reo Hatate and Callum McGregor are back making things tick, but their midfield partner Matt O'Riley may well be heading for pastures new.

With Brighton favourites for his signature, could Sunday's visit to Paisley be a farewell for the impressive 23-year-old?

Celtic are aiming for a sixth successive victory over St Mirren, having won last season's five meetings by an aggregate score of 13-3.

St Mirren's first European adventure in 37 years is over, but manager Stephen Robinson will be glad of the extra rest for such a tough test. He will also be hoping skipper Mark O'Hara can return to add steel and drive in the middle of the park.

After three defeats on the road, St Mirren will be happy to be back on their own patch, where they swept Hibs aside on week one.

However, the Buddies have only celebrated one win from the past 19 home encounters with Celtic, losing 15 of those.

Celtic will want to go into the first Old Firm showdown of the season with a lead over Rangers but, if O'Riley does move in this transfer window, he won't be around for the derby.

Read the rest of this weekend's Premiership picks.

Celtic are interested in Sheffield United and USA defender Auston Trusty, 26. (Sky Sports, external)

Celtic are preparing an £8m bid for Los Angeles FC midfielder Mateusz Bogusz but could be forced to go higher with the Americans in no rush to sell. (Daily Record, external)

Sheffield United are in talks with Celtic over a potential deal for Republic of Ireland winger Mikey Johnston. (Anthony Joseph on X, external)

Read the rest of Friday's Scottish gossip.

Kheredine Idessane
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

All of a sudden this transfer window has taken on a whole new aspect for some Celtic supporters. Where once they seemed far more preoccupied with the number - and quality - of new arrivals, now all of a sudden it's potential departures they are nervously eyeing. Could the club be about to lose two of its top stars?

Matt O'Riley's much mooted move away will come as a surprise to absolutely no-one. Especially with the Premier League megabucks Brighton can throw at him and his Scottish employers. This is the player who very nearly left in January, remember, when Atletico Madrid dangled a carrot.

The notion, however, that the Danish international could be joined at the exit door by star striker Kyogo has sent shockwaves through a section of the support.

Never mind the money those two would bring in if they left, the hole they would leave would require a fair chunk of the money received to be reinvested immediately. The type of signing splurge totally alien to the current Celtic business model.

Throw in apparent interest in Reo Hatate from elsewhere in England and the danger signs start to flash every more vividly for those of a Celtic persuasion.

Brendan Rodgers is adamant he wants the club to emerge stronger from this transfer window and the acquisitions of Kasper Schmeichel, Adam Idah and Paulo Bernardo all seem shrewd.

One big-name departure would pave the way for at least a couple of replacements; if two or more of the first-team regulars were to be enticed away, the whole summer transfer window dynamic of a club operating from a position of strength fades a little.

English Premier League transfer fees and wages are notoriously hard for clubs and players to resist. If Celtic can't, it will take some of their best ever recruitment in the closing days of the market to offset their departures, especially when their aim is to be properly competitive in the upcoming, new-look Champions League.

The next week could very easily define Celtic's season. And at the end of that week? Rangers at Celtic Park in the derby. A trip the Ibrox side won't be relishing if the Parkhead side do manage to keep their top men in Glasgow.

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Dunfermline have signed Celtic goalkeeper Tobi Oluwayemi on a season-long loan.

The 21-year-old joined the Glasgow club from Tottenham back in February 2019 and has featured in 24 league games for Celtic's B team.

The keeper also received two first team call ups for the side's Europa League matches against Bodo Glimt and joined Rodgers' men on their pre-season trip to the US.

Manager James McPake said: "Tobi is a player that we’ve been looking at for a while, he's had a couple of loan spells, playing men's football and is a very good goalkeeper.

"We're now comfortable with the two senior goalkeepers we've got in the squad.

"With Deniz [Mehmet] and Tobi they’ll be able to push each other on, make each other better and we’ve now got two goalkeepers that are desperate to play."

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• St. Mirren have lost each of their last five meetings with Celtic in all competitions, conceding 2+ goals each time.

• Celtic have only suffered one defeat in their last 19 visits to St. Mirren in all competitions (W15 D3), a 0-2 league loss in September 2022 under Ange Postecoglou.

• Since the beginning of last season, only Heart of Midlothian (10) have kept more home clean sheets in the Scottish Premiership than St. Mirren (8 – level with Celtic and Hibernian).

• Celtic have won each of their last eight Scottish Premiership games but they haven’t won their opening three top-flight games of a campaign in their two most recent seasons under Brendan Rodgers (W2 L1 in 2018-19, W2 D1 in 2023-24).

• Callum McGregor has now scored in each of the 11 Scottish Premiership campaigns since 2014-15, the only player to do so, whilst he is just one goal (1 in 2) from equalling his league return from the whole of last season (2 in 35).

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It is fair to say that Manchester City's reported interest in Celtic striker Kyogo took most people by surprise, due to the unexpected nature of the link, the Japan international's importance to Celtic, and City's status in world football.

The Athletic broke the story on Wednesday that the English champions are weighing up a move for Kyogo, and former Hearts midfielder Ryan Stevenson says it would be evidence that "fairytales" can happen in football.

"I think when you first heard it you thought 'this can't be true'," said Stevenson on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"I mean Man City are probably in the top one or two teams in the world just now and for him to go from Celtic to Man City would be a massive bit of news.

"There's no doubt he's a good player and there's no doubt that he can finish and I think that if there is truth in the rumour then Man City would have done their homework and they obviously see potential in something that they can work with every day that they can make the player better.

"It would be a player that they would then see that would fit into their system and how they play.

"I think it's taken everybody aback, the fact that it's Celtic to Man City, but stranger things have happened and the bottom line is he's a very, very good player.

"I'm sure that if it does happen, it would be an amazing move for the player personally and it would give hope to everyone that these fairytale moves can happen."

• All 12 Premiership sides provided a total of 15,101 minutes to Scottish players aged under 21 in the 2023-24 season.

• Those minutes average out to just 1,258 per club, which is the equivalent of only 14 full 90-minute matches.

• Six teams failed to reach a total above 700 minutes.

• Celtic and Rangers were the worst offenders in the division, with Celtic managing just 89 minutes all in, while Rangers' total was even lower at only 26.

Celtic would be unlikely to block a deal for Kyogo if Manchester City bid more than £20m for the Japan striker. (Daily Mail)

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers is against selling another of his key players in Kyogo, with Matt O'Riley edging closer to an exit and three bids rejected for Cameron Carter-Vickers. (Daily Record)

Galatasaray have enquired about adding defender Carter-Vickers to the large number of former SPFL players in Turkey's Super Lig. (Scottish Sun)

Manchester City's assistant manager Juanma Lillo knows all about Celtic's Kyogo after managing him at his previous club Vissel Kobe. (Scottish Sun)

Celtic are keen to bring in LAFC's Polish midfielder Mateusz Bogusz from the MLS for a fee up to £8.5m. (Daily Record)

Winger Ben Doak and left-back Owen Beck are poised to leave Liverpool during this transfer window after being left out of an Under-21 game - and Celtic have been linked with the pair. (Scottish Sun)

Celtic's Japanese defender Yuki Kobayashi is to join Algarve-based Portimonense on a four-year deal. (Scottish Sun)

Celtic remain interested in a swoop for 26-year-old Dundee captain Luke McCowan. (The Herald)

Read the rest of Thursday's gossip.

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Celtic striker Kyogo Furuhashi is "definitely a player" Manchester City like, says Sam Lee, the City correspondent for The Athletic.

Lee broke the story that the English champions are weighing up a move for the Japan international.

He thinks "there's a good chance" the move could happen.

Speaking to BBC Radio Scotland, Lee said: "They're looking for a fairly specific type of player.

"One that's not going to expect to be playing every minute because they don't want to upset the balance they've got but they also want him to be very good.

"They've identified this kind of player, they've looked around for a few options and Kyogo is one of two I believe that they're now kind of deciding between.

"They're going to motor ahead with it over the next 48 hours, there's a good chance it could happen.

"He fits into that strange profile of player they're looking at, where he needs to be very good but almost not so good that he would cost you £50m and also not expect to play every week because everybody knows that [Erling] Haaland is the main man there.

"Kyogo's movement seems to be really good. I know he doesn't always get involved on the ball outside the box but from what I've seen, when he does drop deep and play a one-touch pass with the midfield and then move back into the box, it reminds me of how City used to play before they did have Haaland.

"Then in terms of his finishing inside the box, the amount of chances he gets inside the six-yard box and the goals he gets from there, that's just Haaland like as well. So even on that level, it does seem to fit."

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Celtic's League quarter-final at home to Falkirk will take place on Sunday, 22 September at 15:00 BST.

The game will be shown live on Premier Sports.

Celtic booked their place in the last eight with a 3-1 home win over Hibs while second-tier Falkirk stunned Hearts 2-0.

A lack of first-team action given to youngsters in the Premiership backs up the Scottish FA's assertion that Scotland is not bringing through enough emerging talent.

Just three of the 12 top-flight teams are able to say they provided over 2,000 minutes to Scots aged under 21 across last season's pre-split fixtures.

Dundee sit top of the 2023-24 table with 3,538, but a large chunk of that was clocked up by the one player - Lyall Cameron.

The same applies to the three next best clubs on the chart, Aberdeen (Connor Barron), Kilmarnock (David Watson) and Motherwell (Lennon Miller).

At the bottom of the table are both Old Firm clubs, with the pair posting concerning figures - Celtic just 89 minutes and Rangers only 26.

The report uses Hungary's top flight - a 12-team league - as a direct comparison. It shows Honved provided 6,544 minutes to Hungarian under-21 players, PAFC reached more than 5,000 and two more clubs achieved over 3,000.

Click here to read more on how Scottish football is failing young players.

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Clubs in Scotland are failing to bring through enough young players, a report, external by the Scottish FA has said.

The governing body says Scottish football is "significantly underachieving its potential" in youth development compared to countries of a similar size.

Using a range of data to compare leagues across Europe, it shows players under the age of 21 in Scotland are playing fewer minutes in the top-flight than countries such as Denmark, Norway, and Croatia.

Meanwhile, game time for young Scottish players in major European club competitions ranks below countries with smaller populations and fewer resources, such as Montenegro and North Macedonia.

It also stresses clubs are missing an opportunity to reduce wage costs and increase transfer revenue by developing their own players.

The report was commissioned by the SFA's professional game board at the end of 2023, and a working party comprised of SPFL and SFA representatives will now consider its findings.

Read the full story

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What now for Neil Lennon?

It's a question many, including ex-Scotland striker Lee Miller, are asking following the former Celtic and Hibernian manager's Rapid Bucharest sacking.

The 53-year-old had only been in charge of the Romanian club for six matches after being appointed three months ago.

A run of five draws and a defeat in those six games has Rapid sitting 12th in the 16-team SuperLiga.

After winning 10 domestic honours as a manager in two spells at Celtic, bookending a largely successful spell at Hibs, Lennon tested himself at Omonia Nicosia, where he won the Cypriot Cup, but he was also sacked there after just seven months.

This week's Rapid exit means the Northern Irishman, who had been at home earlier this month following the death of his mother, is out of work again.

As a former manager, Miller praised Lennon's ambition to work abroad, even if he had "nowhere near long enough to produce".

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, ex-Falkirk boss Miller said: "Lennon felt he wanted to try something different, he wanted to test himself, and good on him for doing that.

"But it's just the way he's been repaid... it annoys me as an ex-player and ex-manager. I just think managers need to be given time to work and get their point across to players and get a style in place.

"Three months isn't long enough, it's nowhere near long enough to produce. I don't know what's next for Lennon now, where does he go from here?"

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Celtic have launched a new camouflage-style third kit that marks 30 years since the end of terracing at Parkhead.

The shirt features a graphic inspired by fan flags and scarves in a tribute to "steadfast home support throughout the decades".

The club crest is in white against the camouflage design and is woven to signify "your support is built to last".

Former striker Lee Miller, who turned out for Dundee United, Aberdeen and Kilmarnock among others, recounts his experiences of being on the move on transfer deadline day during his playing career.

Listen and subscribe to the Scottish football podcast on BBC Sounds

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Manchester City are considering a move for Celtic's Japan forward Kyogo Furuhashi, 29. (The Athletic - subscription), external

Brighton hope to complete the signing of Celtic midfielder Matt O'Riley, 23, before the weekend and the sale would intensify the Premiership champions' pursuit of Augsburg midfielder Arne Engels, 20. (Sun), external

Denmark international O'Riley has likely played his last game for Celtic as a move to Brighton moves closer. (Record), external

Celtic defender Gustaf Lagerbielke, 24, is the subject of strong interest from Dutch side Heerenveen. (Sun), external

Liverpool left-back Owen Beck, 22, has been linked with Celtic and Middlesbrough but is apparently not on Boro's radar. (Teeside Live), external

Manchester United midfielder Hannibal Mejbri, 21, who has been linked with Celtic and Rangers, is a target for Burnley. (Fabrizio Romano on X), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish gossip