Former Exeter City goalkeeping coach Kevin Miller admitted that he wasn’t surprised to see Viljami Sinisalo winding up the Rangers players during Celtic’s Scottish Cup win.
Sinisalo was compared to Emiliano Martinez for his behaviour in the penalty shootout as he shouted at the Rangers players when they missed from 12 yards.
67 Hail Hail fans named Sinisalo as the man of the match at Ibrox and his old coach believes that his goading inspired his team to victory.
Should Viljami Sinisalo be the long-term replacement for Kasper Schmeichel?
Viljami Sinisalo’s behaviour ‘rubs off everyone’
Liam Scales was one of the players to praise Sinisalo after the 24-year-old stood tall in front of the Copeland Stand.
Miller worked with the Finland international while he was on loan at Exeter and saw how his confidence affects the rest of his teammates.
He told The Herald: “What you saw on Sunday during the penalties was Vil. That’s in his makeup. He’ll do whatever it takes to succeed and I’ve seen him do all the bouncing and talking before.
“Vil gets involved, and that rubs off on everyone. He’s very vocal, and that’s important. It keeps him engaged in the game, and it helped Celtic get over the line and through to the semi-final.
“There have been a lot of tough fixtures for Celtic lately, but he has come through this test with flying colours, just as I expected him to.”
Viljami Sinisalo has proved he is ready to be the number one
There are calls for Sinisalo to remain the number one ahead of Kasper Schmeichel until the end of the season, and it is hard to disagree.
With a summer rebuild expected, a decision will have to be made between sticking with the 24-year-old or upgrading with a big-money move.
You have £10m to spend on a new goalkeeper to replace Kasper Schmeichel…
Who do you pick?
Options to replace Schmeichel won’t come cheaply and while Sinisalo is still learning on the job, his performances have given him enough credit in the bank to keep the number one spot.
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