New Celtic number one Fraser Forster has been hailed by a surprising figure – ex-Rangers man Alan Hutton.
Forster secured his 100th clean sheet against Rangers two weeks ago, and made it 101 with another shutout against Hamilton Accies at the Fountain of Youth stadium on Saturday. He’s already made three appearances since rejoining Celtic on loan from Southampton.
The former Aston Villa and Spurs full-back has never played with Forster in the past. Therefore, his appraisal of him comes as a bit of a surprise.
However, speaking to Football Insider, Hutton really did sing the praises of our new shot-stopper.
“A player that’s coming and knowing everything about the club. He knows everything – he’s played in Old Firm games, he knows about European nights and stuff and what the fans are like.
“I expect him to really be dominant, to be honest with you. He was an amazing keeper for them in previous years, he’s went down south and obviously decided he needs more game time and come back up to somewhere he knows.
“I really expect him to do well.”
Forster not letting anyone down early doors
It’s interesting to note that against Hearts, Rangers, and Hamilton respectively, the defence has looked a lot more secure than it did earlier on this season.
Sure, the performances of Boli Bolingoli, Christopher Jullien, and Hatem Abd Elhamed have all improved. However, there’s no denying that plenty of it will be to do with Forster being in the nets. He’s a top-quality shot-stopper and is providing the back-line with confidence.
Of course, it’s important not to over-praise him, because in truth he’s hardly had a save to make as of yet. Forster wasn’t troubled against Rangers or Accies respectively. He did, however, save a penalty against Hearts before unfortunately seeing the rebound fired home.
His ball-handling has been impressive so far too. He hasn’t made any glaring errors with cross-balls and doesn’t look to have any rustiness. Forster has pretty much slotted in like a glove, and appears to be the new number one at the club.
It will be interesting to see if Neil Lennon confirms Forster as the starting goalkeeper away to Rennes. That looks highly likely, even if Craig Gordon performed well over two legs against AIK in the playoff round.
And what the game should provide is a first real challenge for Forster when it comes to his shot-stopping. Hopefully, he comes through it with flying colours.
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