Celtic Dressing Room On Edge As Tensions Boil Over Ahead Of Starter Showdown Between New High-Profile Signing Who Refuses A Bench Role And Established Hoops Mainstay With Head Coach And Board Split On Who Starts.
Former Manchester United and Crystal Palace stopper signed late in the summer transfer window
Celtic goalkeeper Sam Johnstone hasn’t joined the club to be second choice goalkeeper as he now aims to ‘wrestle’ current number one Viljami Sinisalo for his place.
The former England international signed on a season-long loan from English giants Wolves days before the Scottish market closure. While minutes are expected for the 33-year old given his pedigree south of the border, Sinisalo has proved to be a very capable pair of hands between the sticks since he took over last season from Kasper Schmeichel after he retired.
While the signing of Johnstone was necessary given Celtic’s lack of first team options at goalkeeper, manager Martin O’Neill now has the challenging task of keeping both Johnstone and Sinisalo happy. With an intense run of fixtures coming up for the Hoops – including two Old Firm derbies, tough Europa League clashes and Hearts at home – it could be a defining period ahead to see who’ll emerge as number one.
Johnstone to ‘wrestle’ Sinisalo for number one spot
According to transfer journalist Pete O’Rourke, Johnstone arrived at Celtic to be the number one choice. He told Football Insider: “Sam Johnstone’s arriving hoping that he can get that number one spot off Sinisalo, he’s not happy playing backup. Obviously, Sinisalo’s got it right now.
“He started the season and obviously ended the season last year with Celtic as the number-one goalkeeper. So Johnstone will have to wrestle that shirt off Sinisalo, but I’m sure he will be hopeful that he can do that after joining from Wolves. You’ve got to remember it’s not that long ago that Sam Johnstone was an England goalkeeper as well. He’s still a quality goalkeeper and I’m sure Johnstone will back himself to come in and really fight for that spot.”
Johnstone on O’Neill factor and mentality
Since arriving last week, Johnstone has been an unused substitute in both Celtic matches, while Sinisalo has very rarely put a foot wrong so far – and is still remembered for his heroics from last season’s double-winning campaign. Despite Johnston’s desire to play which hasn’t yet been fulfilled, the Englishman is happy with how he’s been treated by the club and the manager.
He told the Celtic Way: “I always want to play. Growing up, that’s what you want to do. I don’t think I’ve ever had the mentality to kind of sit there and accept not playing. I find it difficult. It’s an opportunity for me to come up here and try something different with a huge club. I spoke to the manager the other day. He’s just so calm and made me feel welcome from literally the first word we spoke to each other. He came and sat with me and my dad and we enjoyed the conversation with him. He’s a very calm, calm man, experienced manager, so it’s great to be around him as well.”
