Brendan Rodgers vowed Celtic would not be selling any key players this month after rejecting Atletico Madrid’s bid for Matt O’Riley.
Rodgers described the LaLiga side’s offer for the Denmark midfielder as way below Celtic’s valuation but claimed the money was irrelevant with the club not needing to sell.
Celtic’s lead at the top of the cinch Premiership was cut to five points by Rangers’ win over Hibernian on Wednesday with the Ibrox club still holding one game in hand.
And Rodgers is keen to emerge from the window with a stronger squad rather than a weakened one.
“Matt is a player we don’t want to lose and he won’t be going anywhere in January,” Rodgers said.
“It’s a great testament to him and what the club can do for a player. He won his first international cap this season and Atletico Madrid are a big club in European football.
“But he is very much part of what we are doing. He has been a joy to work with and I had a good chat with Matt and he is someone who will be here for us in the second part of the season.”
The 23-year-old is pushing for Denmark’s Euro 2024 squad and appears happy to continue developing at Celtic Park. The former MK Dons player has produced 10 goals and 12 assists this season and recently extended his contract until 2027.
“It’s one of the things I have been really impressed with Matt, his mentality, his professionalism and the respect he has for Celtic,” Rodgers said.
“He had an opportunity in the summer but he was very happy to extend here and obviously Atletico Madrid is a huge club but he also knows he is in a great place here. He has really kicked on this season and he wants to continue with that.
“Firstly, you have a value of the player and certainly what has come in for Matt in the time I have been here is nowhere near the valuation of the quality of player he is. But even if it was we are in a position where we don’t want to sell.”
When asked if it would take a special offer to prise any of his key players away this month, Rodger said: “They won’t be going, it’s as simple as that. January is a difficult month anyway, whether it’s bringing players in or looking to sell players. It’s not something we want to do. We have no interest in that.”
Nicolas Kuhn is Celtic’s sole January signing and the former Rapid Vienna winger is in line to make his debut against Ross County on Saturday.
Rodgers revealed work was continuing to add more but nothing was imminent.
“We have a lot of quality players in our squad that are improving and developing and I want to add more to that,” said the Celtic manager, who will welcome Cameron Carter-Vickers back from injury against County.
“But it’s never easy to add quality because other clubs don’t want to lose quality players.
“But it’s something that is continually being worked on and I hope before the window shuts that we are able to do that.”
He added: “I don’t want to be in a rush to bring in a player, it always has to be the right player.
“And also I want to be here for a period of time, as long of course as I’m successful, so I want to create an opportunity for young players to come through here.
“Everyone talks about signings and I always say you might have someone within your academy, but you need to have the space for those payers to flourish and develop.
“So, yes, I hope we can add to the group, and I’m confident that we can, but also I want to develop the talents that are here and continually grow them.”
Van Dijk welcomes Slot arrival as Liverpool captain commits to Reds future
Virgil van Dijk insists his future remains solely with Liverpool as the Reds captain welcomed incoming Dutch compatriot Arne Slot.
Slot will replace Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager, with the Dutchman expected to take charge at Anfield from Saturday after sealing his switch from Feyenoord.
The soon-to-be Liverpool boss leaves the Netherlands after three highly successful seasons with Feyenoord, having led them to the league title in 2023.
Slot will be welcomed by two fellow countrymen on the red side of Merseyside, with Van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch eager to link-up with their new manager.
As Netherlands began their Euro 2024 training camp on Monday, Van Dijk told a news conference: "I still have a year left on my contract.
"I am club captain and I have made it clear I am there for the new coach and enthusiastic over the next season.
"Obviously, there will be a lot of changes but I am confident we will make a big success of it.
"I congratulated [Slot] of course and I'm really pleased for him and his family. We spoke about the team and the future but now my focus is fully on the national team."
Slot's reign ended with six straight league wins and Feyenoord did not lose any of his final 20 Eredivisie matches at the helm, their last defeat coming against PSV on December 3.
The 45-year-old oversaw exactly 150 games in charge of Feyenoord across all competitions, winning 98 of those contests (65.33 per cent).
Slot also won the KNVB Cup glory in April, overseeing a 1-0 win over NEC Nijmegen in the final of that competition, and Gravenberch believes that success has earnt his Liverpool move.
"I think he can be good for my career, he's a coach who wants to play good football," added Gravenberch.
UEFA and FIFA warned to halt Super League opposition by Spanish court
FIFA and UEFA have been told to stop their opposition against the European Super League (ESL), with a Spanish court ruling warning of anti-competitive behaviour and abuse of a dominant position.
Madrid's commercial court said on Monday the European and world governing bodies violated competition law by banning and punishing clubs from participating in a proposed new tournament.
FIFA and UEFA were told to reverse any anticompetitive actions committed in the past after A22 Sports Management, the company behind the plan to create the ESL, brought the case to Spanish court.
"It's an important step towards a truly competitive and sustainable club football landscape in Europe," A22 CEO Bernd Reichart said in a statement after the ruling.
"For too long UEFA has been allowed to control and dominate club football at European level."
Reichart added that UEFA's position on the ESL has "stifled innovation for decades", though celebrated "the era of the monopoly [as] definitively over".
The case was also brought against LaLiga and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), though that pair and UEFA insisted the court ruling did not explicitly support the creation of the Super League.
"The court has not given the green light to, nor has it approved, projects like the Super League," UEFA said in a follow-up statement.
"In fact, the judge has asserted that the Super League project has long been abandoned and that she cannot be expected to rule on any abstract projects.
"In short, the judgment does not give third parties the right to develop competitions without authorisation and does not concern any future project or indeed any modified version of an existing project."
English football's so-called 'big six' – Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham – were founding members of the original Super League project in April 2021.
Yet those Premier League clubs quickly withdrew amid fan protests and pressure from the football authorities, with Milan, Inter and Atletico Madrid following a similar suit.
UEFA has since changed its rules around new competitions following the collapse of the ESL proposal in April 2021 and the court says those new rules are unaffected by Monday's ruling.
"The court also confirmed that the current version of UEFA's authorisation rules [as adopted in June 2022] is not affected by today's ruling," the European governing body added.
Bonmati named Women's Champions League Player of Season for second straight campaign
Aitana Bonmati secured the Women's Champions League Player of the Season for a second straight campaign after guiding Barcelona to European glory.
The Spain international scored in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Lyon in the final, helping Jonatan Giraldez's side clinch an unprecedented quadruple.
Fellow Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas produced the other goal in that victory, but Bonmati was named Player of the Match after another eye-catching performance.
With six goals and six assists, the 26-year-old managed more goal contributions than any other player in this season's Champions League, and that earned Bonmati further individual recognition.
"She influenced the game all over the pitch in and out of possession. High progressive passes, high ball recoveries and scored a great goal," UEFA's technical observer panel said in a statement.
Bonmati also scored eight goals in Barcelona's victorious Liga F campaign this season, helping the Spanish giants win the competition for a fifth consecutive time.
Having already won the Ballon d'Or and FIFA's best women's player award for 2023, this UEFA award caps a fine season for the impressive Bonmati.
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