Scott Bain was lured away from Easter Road within four weeks of joining on loan from Dundee in January when Celtic snapped him up as emergency cover following the loss of injured number one Craig Gordon.
Even so, Dorus de Vries was Gordon’s first replacement, and Bain only managed to make his debut appearance when de Vries also suffered from a shock ankle injury in training.
But now he has strengthened his case for making that Parkhead switch a permanent move in the summer thanks to the excellent first impression he made in the heat of Celtic’s 3-2 win over Rangers at Ibrox a few weeks ago.
Odsonne Edouard might have grabbed the winning goal, but Hoops’ third choice keeper ended up a hero after saving twice from Alfredo Morelos, the second stop after the Colombian missed an open goal.
In fact, he’s been so impressive that now Hearts, Hibernian, Bristol City and Birmingham have
confirmed their interest in the 26-year- old, who is desperate for a permanent deal from Celtic.
So if Celtic did offer him a permanent contract – and they should – where would that leave Gordon and de Vries?
Bain is a very good option between the sticks and it is baffling that de Vries was played ahead of him in the last couple of months while Gordon has been out injured.
De Vries struggled in his debut season in Scotland, and his panicky and agitated performance in the Europa League second leg defeat to Zenit St Petersburg did nothing to quell the notion that he is an accident waiting to happen.
Had he been in goal in the 3-2 Old Firm match, de Vries would have went to pieces after conceding an early goal in the game, but Bain managed to recover and turned in a good performance in the second half in particular, and never doubted that the Bhoys would have won in the end.
But will Brendan Rodgers recall the experienced head of Gordon despite Bain’s stunning debut?
Gordon is, and has been for a while, one of Celtic’s best keepers. He’s kept balls from finding the net in numerous big games across the Premier League and Champions League and is the first choice keeper for the Scotland national team.
When he first off on injury his absence was duly noted at Celtic. But the Hoops can turn down the panic now that they currently have Bain and even if Rodgers chooses to stick with Gordon, Celtic need a strong second choice keeper.
In saying that, Gordon is now reaching 36-years- old. A player’s peak age is around 27-29 and
although goalkeepers have a much longer career than other field players, perhaps this would be a good time for him to consider taking a back step.
To keep Gordon on the scene and at the same time give Bain a place on the first team, Gordon could go into coaching. Some of the most successful coaches are goalkeepers, like English former keeper David James who made 572 Premier League appearances during his career before he went on to coach Kerala Blasters, and Raymond Goethals who became a manager and led Marseille to European Cup glory in 1993.
Goalkeepers have a different outlook on a game than other field players and the things they know can improve both the worst player on the pitch and the best. They see things different than the rest of the players because even if they don’t have to make a save, they’ve spent the entire 90+ minutes analysing what could happen – something which is harder to do when playing in the field.
If he went into coaching he would be able to give some of his experience to Bain, who is a better option going forward. Giving him plenty of game time between now and summer will mean that he will be more likely to sign for the Bhoys ahead of Hibs and Hearts.
When Bain started the season at Dundee the prospects of him being an Old Firm hero seemed remote at best, but after his performances he has proven that he is well-worth keeping around at Celtic Park.
Comentários