Ex-Celtic star plays major role in thumping Conference League win.
Former Celtic favourite Matt O’Riley scored his first goal for Brighton in 426 days as they topped the Conference League table with a 4-0 thrashing of FK Kauno Zalgiris at the AMEX Stadium on Thursday night.
O’Riley, 25, enjoyed major success at Celtic, winning three Scottish Premiership titles, two Scottish Cups and one Scottish League Cup in his two-and-a-half-season spell. He played a vital role in the team that won a domestic double in the 2023/24 season, scoring 19 goals and assisting 18 more in all competitions.
After claiming the club’s player of the season award, he became Celtic’s record transfer sale when he signed for English Premier League side Brighton in a deal reported to be over £26million. His move to the Seagulls began in nightmare fashion, though, with O’Reilly suffering a severe ankle injury just nine minutes into his debut against Crawley Town, forcing him to undergo surgery and ruling him out for three months.
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Upon his return from injury, O’Reilly struggled to replicate his Parkhead form and was allowed to move to Marseille on a season-long loan last summer. After returning to Brighton in the summer, O’Reilly has had to remain patient once more, with the Danish international restricted to just 10 minutes of league action for Fabian Hurzeler’s side.
However, O’Reilly took his opportunity in the Conference League after being offered a rare opportunity to start by the German head coach on the right-hand side of a front three, scoring his first goal for the club in almost 14 months as Brighton took apart the Lithuanian outfit in their Conference League opener.
One of the favourites to win the third-tier European competition, Brighton opened the scoring just minutes before half-time when forward Georginio Rutter put them ahead from close range. The goal was subject to a VAR check, with debate surrounding whether Ibrahim Osman had ran the ball out of play before his crossed it for the Frenchman. There was no debate about their second goal, though, with Jack Hinshelwood’s left-footed drive doubling their lead in first-half injury time..
A lightning-quick break saw Rutter add his second of the night after being teed up by Osman once again, before O’Reilly got himself in on the act in the 67th minute, latching onto Younes Ibrahim’s pinpoint cross to bullet home a stunning angled header from inside the area, scoring his first goal for the club since a 1-1 league draw against Fulham on August 15th, 2025.
“We showed a good performance, a disciplined performance,” said Brighton boss Hurzeler, who conceded the likes of O’Reilly had given him food for thought following the display. “A performance where we kept a clean sheet and a performance where a lot of players used the opportunities. This will be key for the season, that we can really rely on each other. It's important for players who are not playing regularly to step up and use their opportunity. We know we can rely on everyone so it was quite a positive evening... A lot of players took their opportunity and that's something we will need for the whole season.”