John Barnes believes Matt O'Riley will stay put at Celtic for the time being - as he's still got much to prove in terms of consistency.
The midfielder has had an outstanding start to the season and his form overall since joining from MK Dons in January has attracted reported interest from Liverpool, Manchester United and others. Former Hoops boss and Anfield attacker Barnes has been impressed by him and can tell he's a stellar talent, but a lengthy run of great performances is what he feels is needed for O'Riley to warrant a huge move.
Speaking to BonusCodeBets, Barnes said: "He has done really well in a short amount of time in the Celtic jersey. But he has to show over a longer time that he can perform consistently. He has started out really well in Celtic and he is obviously a very good player. But I’m sure he will stay at Celtic for a longer time, even though he has been linked to big clubs.”
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Barnes added that it's so important for Celtic to be back in the Champions League, following on from a positive showing in an opening defeat to holders Real Madrid.
He added: " Celtic are back where they belong. Celtic should be in the Champions League.
"It’s really important for them to compete with the best teams in Europe, but they haven’t been able to do that for the last twenty years.”
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