The imminent signing of Kasper Schmeichel has dominated Celtic news and online discussion over the last 24 hours as the club finally close in on a goalkeeper.
Many names have been linked with the Bhoys over the last few months after Joe Hart announced his retirement.
In the end, it’ll be a player familiar to Brendan Rodgers who takes up the task. Schmeichel is reported to be undergoing a medical this weekend to sign for Celtic in time for the upcoming USA tour.
The two worked together closely at Leicester City so the Celtic manager knows exactly what he is getting in the 37-year-old.
Plenty of Celtic fans will be familiar with the Dane’s efforts in the English Premier League but recent seasons at Nice and Anderlecht are less on the radar.
Some supporters are asking themselves whether Schmeichel is still a shot-stopper who can perform at a high level despite his age.
Kasper Schmeichel had a strong season at Anderlecht
The good news is that Schmeichel did well in Belgium last season, to the extent that Anderlecht wanted to keep him for the 2024/25 campaign per reports in Denmark. [Tipsbladet]
From 31 league appearances in total, Fotmob data shows that his save percentage (shots saved from shots on target) of 79.3% was the highest in the division across 2023/24. He was also one of the most industrious keepers in the league, making a hefty 3.9 saves per 90 minutes.
Anderlecht would have conceded more if not for the big man in goal. Schmeichel personally prevented a massive 14.36 goals across the campaign – more than any other goalkeeper in the country.
That metric is calculated from the total goals conceded (31) against the expected goals on target faced (45.36), suggesting he was consistently pulling off some impressive stops.
All of the numbers above are also higher than any goalkeeper in the Scottish Premiership during 2023/24, including Joe Hart.
Schmeichel compares favourably to Joe Hart
Making that direct comparison to Hart, Schmeichel shows up well. Hart was obviously far less busy than the Dane as Celtic conceded fewer chances than Anderlecht, making just 1.68 saves per 90 minutes in the Scottish top-flight.
Nonetheless, his save percentage lagged well below Schmeichel at 67.8% and Hart isn’t regarded by the stat trackers to have prevented many goals on average across the season, conceding 29 in the Premiership from 29 expected goals on target faced.
When it comes to distribution, Hart had a higher pass completion percentage of 87.6%, likely owing to a more patient style of build-up play at the Bhoys. Schmeichel was more effective with longer balls, with 50.2% accuracy compared to Hart’s 41.2%.
In summary, it all bodes rather well for Celtic. The Bhoys look to be getting a goalkeeper as busy as any other despite his advancing years. He’ll be arriving in Glasgow off the back of an impressive campaign, working under a manager who knows how to utilise him well.
As always, signings are ultimately judged on what they do in a Celtic jersey, so let’s see what he can offer.
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