The thought of Fraser Forster has loomed over Celtic Park all season, while it’s clear that either him or someone like him is needed next year.
The defence has looked shaky and it will feature some new faces next season so it’s not enough to simply have a good shot stopper, they also need a commanding presence who can organise the defence too.
The Rangers crashed out of the Scottish Cup at the weekend after an impressive performance from St Johnstone, but the win owed a lot to a remarkable all-action display from the keeper Zander Clark.
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He made several big saves during the game, forced the late equaliser as he ventured up for a corner and then proved to be the hero in the shootout with two solid penalty stops.
There were echoes of Forster when he kept the same opposition out last year as Celtic triumphed in the League Cup Final, and Noel Whelan has been quick to compare Clark to Forster (quotes from Football Insider):
“Clark was just incredible really. The performance reminded me of Fraser Forster in the cup final last season, one of those games where you just cannot do anything wrong.
“Everything fell into place nicely for him and like with Forster, I’m sure Celtic fans are very happy about Zander Clark’s performance!
“He was key to the victory on the day for St Johnstone. It was a cup shock, that is for sure.”
There’s an obvious link to be made here as Celtic need to sign at least one new goalkeeper in the summer, and Clark will bring a proven and commanding presence to the team.
St Johnstone have never been in a position to demand a huge fee for anyone so it’s unlikely that he would cost anything over the £1m mark, so it could look like good business if he could bring that level of performance on a consistent basis.
There’s an issue where he can be inconsistent and he’s not a great ball-playing goalkeeper so there are limitations there, but he’s continuing to show he can do it when it matters most so he would be an interesting option.
