The Record’s Mark Pirie once again belittles Scottish football at the expense of Celtic’s Matt O’Riley

Over the last few days, there has been a lot of people coming to the defence of Matt O’Riley in relation to his snub for the Euros by Danish manager Kasper Hjulmand.

It seems a strange decision in light of the season O’Riley has just had, added to the fact a club like Atletico Madrid declared their interest in the player last January.

The media is currently stating adamantly that the interest from Diego Simeone still remains.

O’Riley caught the eye of the Argentinian manager during the games Celtic played against his side in last season’s Champions League group stages.

Simeone clearly sees something in O’Riley.

Whether that amounts to the Scottish transfer record being broken to land him, remains to be seen.

And whether it’s more than Kasper Hjulmand sees in him, only time will tell.

Yesterday evening, Mark Pirie of the Daily Record, decided it was time to belittle Scottish football again, and players like Matt O’Riley.

I’m aware that this particular article has already been commented on, but I felt I needed to call out Pirie as well.

The more of us that do this, and make people realise what a shower of wasters the hacks at that paper are, the better.

The Record, and it’s team of pulitzer prize winning journalists, never seem to tire of mocking the game they report on in Scotland.

We all know Hugh Keevins is a serial offender in this regard.

Pirie felt playboy, and convicted criminal Niklas Bendtner, would be the ideal source of belittlement for the game we all love and support in Scotland.

But here’s the thing, the headline that Pirie uses in his article is completely spurious in what it says.

Simply because Bendtner does not mention “reality checks” or Celtic in the excerpt from his interview.

Nor did he “spark a brutal pile on”.

See the headline below:

Matt O’Riley lands ‘small’ Celtic reality check from smirking Nicklas Bendtner as Denmark snub sparks brutal pile on

Before I actually go into the article, it’s clear from the outset that this is an attack on Celtic, O’Riley, and the Scottish game by Pirie.

He has zero interest in promoting the game he reports on.

Zero interest in promoting any top quality talent that emerges from it.

And a huge amount of interest in belittling the club that invariably produces the best exports out of the Scottish game.

Because if you actually read what Bendtner says, none of it is applicable to Pirie’s headline.

It’s clear that because Bendtner is a controversial figure, Pirie thought he could create something controversial out of his comments.

But there really isn’t anything at all controversial in what he says.

He’s asked for his opinion, and he gives it:

If you look at those who have been selected, they are more skilled. It is always a debate, but if we look at it in black and white. Did he have a chance to play in other games? No. Then there is no reason to take him along. Although he is extremely talented and might be a man for the future, he is a young lad.

Nothing controversial in there, is there?

He says that he thinks the reason O’Riley wasn’t selected was because he didn’t play enough full internationals.

Fair comment, wouldn’t you think?

He then goes on to say that he thinks that O’Riley is extremely talented, and might be a man for the future.

And that he is a young lad.

So, despite what Pirie is saying, he does not spark a brutal pile on.

He, in fact, gives a pretty balanced opinion.

He then goes on to say this:

He will probably join the national team. I have no doubt about that. But at this point, it’s just not now.

It’s just not now.

And that’s the simple fact of it.

Bendtner has no doubt O’Riley has a future in the Danish national side, just not now.

There is nothing to suggest he’s giving O’Riley a “reality check”, “smirking at him”, or instigating a “brutal pile on”.

In fact, it’s the complete opposite.

He’s praising the lad, and stating that he’s definitely one for the future.

Bendtner is just stating facts, there are players in the Danish squad who have many more caps than O’Riley, Hjulmand has just chosen to rely on them.

It does not necessarily mean they are better than O’Riley, just better options at this moment in time.

The article finishes with the below comment:

Bendtner also suggested the level of the Scottish Premiership and Celtic won’t have helped him make the squad. Pressed on the topic, he laughed: “Yes, it’s small.”

I assume that’s where the smirking came from, because I can’t see reference to it anywhere else in the article.

To be fair, there’s not much I can say about that comment.

We play in a league that consists of 12 teams.

That is not BIG.

Our own club has more finances than all of the remaining 11 put together.

And that includes the Ibrox side.

Whether we like it or not, we DO play in a small league.

As a Celtic blogger, it’s up to me to promote Celtic, and that’s what I try to do.

Not only that, but I also try to promote the game and the league we play in, because I’ve always said there is something special about it.

There is a passion in our game that you’ll struggle to find in other leagues.

Because it is not destroyed by television money, and oil rich countries.

What we actually have, folks, is priceless.

Yet Mark Pirie thinks it’s his job to belittle the game he’s supposed to promote, as well as the clubs (mostly Celtic), and players that play in it.

I’m sure he had aspirations to be a good journalist when he went journalism school.

It all just went by the wayside the minute he started at the Record.

Now he’s nothing but a stenographer with a chip on his shoulder, copying and pasting shite he finds on podcasts, and crap websites like Football Insider.

God forbid he might have an original thought.

Oh yeah, he does, he seems to always find original ways to put Celtic and our players down.

And he has no qualms about the Scottish game being collateral in that process.

What a bitter, nasty, and spiteful individual.

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