On Friday two of Celtic’s goalkeepers were in action on international duty, and it has to be said that it was a contrasting night of results for the duo.
Let’s start with the good news. It concerns Celtic goalkeeper Ross Doohan, who is currently on loan at Ross County.
Unfortunately he has yet to make an appearance for their first-team this season. However, that hasn’t stop Doohan from being first choice for Scotland under-21s.
Helped Scotland to crucial win
Doohan started in a crucial game against the Czech Republic, and helped Scotland to a 2-0 win, which gives the national team a real chance of qualifying for the under-21 European Championship.
As for Conor Hazard, who is currently Celtic’s third choice goalkeeper, he started for Northern Ireland under-21s in their game against Finland.
Unfortunately, they went down to a 3-2 defeat, their prospects of making the European Championships are long gone.
However, overall it is a good thing that the duo are playing international football. It can only benefit their progress going forward. Especially as at the moment, first-team football for the pair is hard to come by.
It is probably easier for Doohan on the face of it. However, so far he has been unable to dislodge Ross Laidlaw from the nets. Doohan has been on the bench regularly, and hopefully his performance for Scotland will impress the Ross County management.
Involved with Hoops squad in Europe
As for Hazard, he at least gets the benefit at Celtic of always being involved in European nights, as the Hoops need to take three goalkeepers in their squad.
He is in the Hoops squad for the Europa League, and those experiences can only be good for the player. However, both Hazard and Doohan will want to play football on a regular basis sooner rather than later.
At the moment, that doesn’t look like it will be happening any time soon. That is why these international games are so vital, so the players’ development can progress.
In other news, Rab Douglas can understand why Leigh Griffiths didn’t get a Scotland call-up.
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