It’s a case of one down and one to go for Kasper Schmeichel after going through the first of two surgeries required on his troublesome shoulder which he has been managing since breaking it in an international match for Denmark away to Portugal a year ago.
The Celtic goalkeeper today posted an image of himself with an arm in a sling to his 1m Instagram followers, commenting:
“First shoulder operation done, everything went well. Now full focus on recovery and preparing for the next one. Thanks for all the messages over the past few weeks, it means a lot,” Kasper Schmeichel…
Kasper Schmeichel had been focused on getting to the World Cup with Denmark with that possibly being a dream ending to an illustrious playing career. He has been the No1 at Celtic but after that injury in Lisbon hasn’t really been the same goalkeeper for the Scottish Champions and seemed to be playing while protecting his shoulder.
The bizarre own goal he scored for Aberdeen to help them get to a penalty shoot-out in the Scottish Cup final in May could have been a red flag moment but after the summer Schmeichel retained the gloves and was the first pick keeper for THREE separate Celtic manager’s this season – Brendan Rodgers, Martin O’Neill (on two occasions) and Wifried Nancy.
In the Europa League play-off match Kasper was culpable for at least two goals with the German side VfB Stuttgart clearly having noticed the Celtic keeper protecting his shoulder as he conceded against Kilmarnock just days before the Bundesliga side won in Glasgow.
And over in Denmark ahead of the first round play-off against North Macedonia (the winners play Czechia or Republic of Ireland), questions are being asked of Denmark boss Brian Riemer, with the Danish media wanting to know why Riemer stood by Schmeichel in the latter stages of the qualifiers which many believe cost Denmark automatic qualification with Scotland taking it instead after that unforgettable evening at Hampden.
At his media conference ahead of the match against North Macedonia, Riemer was asked about the “special treatment” he offered Kasper Schmeichel.
Riemer responded: “It’s not my place. If you told me some personal things, you would think it was strange if I shared it all with the people of Denmark.
“There is no difference [in treatment]. I also think I expressed clearly at the press conference that Kasper was incredibly upset, and it was a difficult conversation to have with me.
“You’re talking about sharing the details of the conversation. It’s a private matter. I think it would be a great interview to do with Kasper, but we have to respect that people have private things.
“It’s Kasper’s injury. That’s why it’s natural that he’s the one talking about it. Anything else would be deeply disrespectful.”
With Kasper last week updating via an American broadcaster covering the Champions League matches in England, revealing that his surgeon told him he needs tow operations on his shoulder and effectively ruling him out for a year, his World Cup dream came to an end. The worry in Denmark is that the nation’s dream is also in danger of ending if they fail to win these two difficult matches.
Celtic supporters too have regrets over Schmeichel’s clear and obvious decline over the past year and question the club at various levels for allowing a clearly injured player to continue in goals for the club.
Kasper Schmeichel’s contract at Celtic ends at the end of this season and there is little chance at 39 and facing a year out of the game, that he will be offered.a new deal. As Kasper admitted himself last week on CBS Sports, his playing career could well be over.
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