Chris Sutton gives his thoughts on the career decisions that Fraser Forster faces and breaks down what its means to bring Joe Hart to Celtic.
Chris Sutton has been vocal on his regular column at The Daily Record and this weeks installment was no different. He did not mince words when it came down to Fraser Forster’s importance to Celtic’s 10IAR.
Forster doesn’t want to come back to Parkhead on loan, he wants to play for The Hoops as a permanent fixture. Sutton weighed in on the possibility of losing Forster, loan or otherwise and if it comes down to it the goalie should remain loyal to Neil Lennon, who gave him that game time. Forster is underutilized at Southampton to an almost dizzying degree, it is understandable that he would want to remain with the Scottish giants in order to play and to grow.
Without the boss man it is no stretch of the imagination that Forster would spend his time with Southampton on the bench, a sentiment that Sutton echoes in his column in the Daily Record:
"“Last summer, when Forster was stuck out in the cold and no one wanted to take him from Southampton, it was Lennon who went out and resurrected his career. He gave Forster the platform again to go out and show what he’s all about.“They say there’s no loyalty in football any more and, if it’s the case that Forster does snub Celtic, that’d be a slap in the face to a manager who’s done more for him than anyone.”"
Celtic is great for Forster, and Forster is great for Celtic. Sutton has a feeling that the goalkeeper wants to stay on and can have his say in the negotiations in the coming days. There have been rumors floating around about where he’ll end up, but its clear that he should remain with Celtic out of personal preference and loyalty.
"“Now, of course, I am not armed with all of the details. I don’t know the intricacies of the deal – who is due what financially, what the demands where and who was going to pay and lose what. But one thing I do know is that players have ultimate power these days. Regardless of a situation, if they want to get out of a club or make a deal happen, it genuinely happens.“My gut feeling is that if Forster really, really wants to be at Celtic, he can still make it happen, even if it’s not looking likely right at this moment in time.”"
Of course, nothing is set in stone and there is a possibility that we won’t see Forster back with The Bhoys this coming season. A number of names have been thrown out there to replace the English man; Claudio Bravo, Vasilios Barkas, and Joe Hart have been linked with a move.
Sutton gave his thoughts on Hart making his way to Celtic:
"“I’ll tell you one place they shouldn’t go anywhere near and that’s Joe Hart.“He was a top-class goalkeeper at his peak, but he’s too much of a gamble having had a bad spell in his career.“If you want my opinion, he won’t be anywhere near Celtic Park.“This is a crucial decision for the club. Missing out on Forster would leave a gaping hole and Lennon is going to want a proper No.1 who can command and also provide some calm during a tense season.”"
Southampton brass aren’t afraid to sign off on the deal, as long as it is a permanent one.
It is definitely risky to bring a new keeper, one who has had dips in the past,into the fold during such a critical juncture on the road to ten-in-a-row, but Lennon is a man who takes calculated risks. He took one on Fraser Forster and that resulted in one hell of a season.
Will we see a hot streak with Joe Hart?