completed deal: Information about Atletico Madrid’s effort to buy Matt O’Riley is revealed by a Danish publication

The Celtic Star was informed this morning by our colleagues at the reputable Danish publication Tipsbladet about Atletico Madrid’s pursuit of Celtic player Matt O’Riley and the £18 million offer that the Spanish team made to Celtic. The Danish website verifies that this deal was turned down because Celtic wanted a minimum transfer fee of £25 million, and after finding out this information, Atlético declined to make a counter offer.Though it was originally a loan deal with an obligation to buy in the summer, you have to wonder what would have happened if they had agreed to the alleged asking price to sign the player in January, leaving Celtic with even more funds coming in. Currently, the only players available to sign are Nicolas Kuhn and Adam Idah on loan. Tipsbladet is a weekly Danish sports magazine that focuses on football; it is the oldest football magazine in Scandinavia and has its headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark. Our friends at this Danish outlet regularly keep The Celtic Star updated on Celtic-related news coming out of Denmark, and this morning they sent us their exclusive article with permission to use on The Celtic Star

Had the renowned coach Diego Simeone had his way, Matt O’Riley would already be flaunting an Atletico Madrid jersey. However, the biggest deal a Danish player was involved in during the January transfer window was terminated by the Scottish club Celtic. Thus, Tipsbladet can disclose that the Spanish major club made Celtic an enormous offer that is expected to result in the midfield star’s acquisition.

As to the information provided by Tipsbladet, the bid said that Atletico Madrid would have to commit to hiring Matt O’Riley in the springtime in order to purchase him this summer for 18 million pounds, or 156 million kroner, on a free transfer.