Pundit Paul John Dykes has recently made a claim about former Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
Dykes was hosting the latest episode of the ‘A Celtic State of Mind’ podcast and he spoke about multiple issues involving the Hoops. Dykes also talked about Forster and if the club should look to bring the Englishman back to Parkhead in the January transfer window. The pundit feels that fans should wait and see how Vasilis Barkas performs for the club before thinking about whether Forster should be re-signed or not.
Forster was on loan at Celtic last season and the Hoops had tried to sign him in the recent summer transfer window. Neil Lennon had confirmed that while a deal was agreed with Southampton, things went ‘quiet’ from the player’s end of the agreement (as per Sky Sports).
Should Celtic sign Forster in January?
Yes
No
Dykes hailed the impact that Forster had at Celtic last season, saying: “Should we go for him in January? It is a good question. People might scoff at that because we spent a lot of money on Barkas. When you look at the impact that Forster had last year in particular in the League Cup final, he makes such a difference to the defence, he makes such a difference to the Celtic side under Neil Lennon.
“It is something that between now and then, let’s just see how Barkas performs, how he can come back from the criticism that he’s been facing over the last couple of weeks or even months.”
TIF Thoughts on Dykes’ comments regarding Fraser Forster…
Barkas has picked up a rating of 6.64/10 in the Premiership this season and as many as 14 Celtic players have picked up better ratings than him in the league so far (as per WhoScored). It suggests that he hasn’t made an impressive start to life at Parkhead.
Last season, Forster saved a penalty in the League Cup final against Rangers and in the UEFA Europa League last-32 first leg against Copenhagen. It might be enough to suggest that he indeed came up with vital performances in big games for Celtic.
Having said that, Barkas joined Celtic in the summer and this is his first season in Scotland. He might still be getting to grips with playing in the country. So it makes sense for the Bhoys to give the Greek goalkeeper some time to improve his performances.