Celtic man Scott Bain talks about training, Brendan Rodgers and the changing role of the goalkeeper

By Euan Davidson

March 31, 2021

Celtic man Scott Bain has talked about his development as a ball-playing goalkeeper.

While he’s not every supporter’s first choice for the no.1 jersey, Bain hasn’t done an awful lot wrong since returning to the first-team. Under John Kennedy, Bain’s distribution has improved to launch counter-attacks, something he’d clearly been working on with with Stevie Woods and Colin Meldrum.

Scott Bain told Celtic TV:

“I think we can see now that, throughout all the leagues, everyone wants to play out from the back. Keep possession, play through the lines a lot more.

“They want their goalkeeper to join in and always have an overload where they can use the goalkeeper to keep the ball in certain situations. It’s no longer a game where… everyone squeezes up, and you kick it up the pitch and hope for the best.”

“I think [ball playing is something] that I worked on when I joined here. It was focused more on when Brendan Rodgers was the manager. From there, it allowed me to build confidence that I am good enough to essentially be one of the outfield players when they need to use me.”

Scott Bain during a Celtic training session / (Photo by Craig Foy/SNS Group via Getty Images)

Celtic man Scott Bain still has issues but his attitude is top-notch

Scott Bain has always been a likeable Celtic goalkeeper. The frustration for Celtic supporters, though, has been in his positioning and decision-making, especially in European competition.

His performances in the Europa League this season were disappointing, and he’d be first to admit that. However, his attitude is clearly bang-on and he seems obsessed with improvement and being useful. That’s obviously an excellent quality.

It’s anyone’s guess, though, who the Celtic no.1 will be next season. Vasilis Barkas may get another go, or be sold, and we’re no closer to a sign of either. Conor Hazard has staked his claim for first-team minutes, and the Northern Irishman has obvious potential, but he’s still a little raw.

Bain doesn’t seem like the type to make a fuss. Whether he’s first on the team-sheet or not, he’ll be working on aspects of his game behind the scenes.

READ MORE: Olivier Ntcham’s Celtic career no longer looks consigned to history.