Former Celtic striker John Hartson has been reacting to a double contract update he’s heard out of Parkhead.
What’s the latest Celtic contract news?
The Hoops have been busy off the pitch in recent months, firstly in the transfer market by bringing in 10 new players. Maik Nawrocki, Luis Palma, Gustaf Lagerbielke, Odin Thiago Holm, Hyun-jun Yang, Marco Tilio, Hyeok-kyu Kwon and Tomoki Iwata all completed permanent deals to Celtic Park, whereas Nat Phillips and Paulo Bernardo sealed season-long loan transfers from Liverpool and Benfica.
The club have also acted when it comes to contract extensions for some of their star players, with Kyogo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda, Callum McGregor, Liel Abada and Anthony Ralston all signing new deals in recent months.
Two more players could be about to follow suit as well in midfielders Matt O’Riley and Reo Hatate. Recent reports have suggested that Celtic are ramping up discussions with O’Riley and are close to a breakthrough with Hatate.
Talking on The Go Radio Football Show, relayed by The Boot Room, BBC pundit Hartson gave his thoughts on potential new deals for the pair, describing it as “excellent news” and “very wise from Celtic”.
“Excellent news. [Reo] Hatate and Matt O’Riley, you want to tie your best players down in this day and age.
“You could get an offer, they might still get an offer even when they sign new contracts. But you want to tie your best players down.
“You don’t want to let them go into a situation where they’ve got a year or a couple of years left and their agents can then go and talk to other clubs.
“But of course, if you have them tied down on contracts as well, it means that if there was a buying club, they’d have to pay more money for them. Because in terms of the fee, they’d have to buy their contracts out as well.
“So very wise from Celtic and besides that, they’re both very good players.”
O’Riley and Hatate’s Celtic careers…
Both O’Riley and Hatate made the move to Scotland back in January 2022 and have been regulars ever since, helping the Hoops win a domestic treble last season.
O’Riley has made a total of 80 senior appearances for Celtic, contributing to 30 goals in all competitions. The 22-year-old has been a regular under new manager Brendan Rodgers, already scoring four times and registering two assists in eight appearances during the current campaign.
Meanwhile, Hatate has turned out on 71 occasions in green and white, scoring 14 goals and providing 14 assists, however, he has found it more challenging under Rodgers. So far this season, the Japan international has started just two games, making do with a place on the bench early on before missing fixtures through injury.
However, the pair appear to be important members of the current squad, so it would be another boost for the club if they were the next to pen Parkhead terms, as Hartson has claimed, and by the looks of things, deals could develop soon.