Matt O’Riley left Celtic for Brighton & Hove Albion towards the end of last summer.
The midfielder made his Brighton debut in the EFL Cup win over Crawley Town in August and was forced off the pitch due to an injury. He spent 74 days on the sidelines before regaining fitness in November.
O’Riley finished his debut season at Brighton with 948 minutes from 23 games. He’s been speaking to the Danish media about his struggles during the campaign, and [BT](https://www.bt.dk/fodbold/matt-oriley-kaemper-med-uvante-positioner-i-brighton?) in Denmark have relayed his comments.
The 24-year-old believes Fabian Hürzeler deciding to use him elsewhere than his preferred No.8 role is partly behind the issues.
_“I’m best at the number 8 position, where I can go box to box. I’ve only played two games there, otherwise I’ve been used as a winger, false number 9 or something else,”_ he said.
_“It makes it difficult to show off when you play a position you’re not completely happy with.”_
The Denmark international isn’t telling the Danish media anything he hasn’t told the Brighton manager himself, explaining he’s not afraid to share his frustration with Hürzeler.
_“I’m just giving my opinion. I can play better for the team if I play the number 8 position, but I can play well in other positions. You can say it in a way that is not aggressive. If you are honest with another person, you don’t lose anything. The coach can always say he doesn’t agree,”_ O’Riley explained.
The Dane explained the Brighton manager has asked that he improve the defensive side of his game, which may be behind a reluctance to use him as a No.8.
_“I’ve become better at defending myself, being more aggressive and intense in duels. My coach said I should work on my defensive attitude so that I could defend better and help the team in that way. I think that will also help on the national team,”_ he added.
O’Riley picked up another injury in February and that kept him on the sidelines for a month. The Brighton player says he’s been in a “much better place” physically over the past six to seven weeks.
In addition to Hürzeler’s decisions and injuries, O’Riley has faced challenges in his personal life, and he believes that also impacted his game.
_“I’ve had some tough times in my personal life with people close to me, and it doesn’t help on the pitch if you’re not stable in your life off the pitch. I just have to focus on the football, take care of my well-being and have fun. Then the rest will follow,”_ he concluded.