Celtic could be ready to revive move for Turnbull
MOTHERWELL’S David Turnbull is back on Celtic’s radar. A £3million move to Parkhead collapsed when the Scotland Under-21 star failed a medical last summer.
With Turnbull now fully recovered from preventative knee surgery, however, Celtic scouting chief Nicky Hammond watched him play an hour of Friday’s behindclosed-doors clash with Kilmarnock at Fir Park.
Celtic have maintained regular checks on the 21-year-old and, despite a 3-2 defeat, his form and fitness raises the prospect of Neil Lennon tabling a bid before an amended transfer window closes in October.
Celtic also expect to conclude their search for a new goalkeeper this week after Fraser Forster opted to stay put at Southampton.
The SPFL champions have looked at Vasilios Barkas of AEK Athens, Scotland keeper David Marshall and former England No1 Joe Hart.
Sportsmail understands attention has now turned to a loan move for an unnamed keeper elsewhere.
SCOTT BROWN last night insisted Celtic are in safe hands if they start their ten-in-a-row bid with Scott Bain as their No 1 goalkeeper. Neil Lennon was left disappointed when his bid to sign Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster on a permanent deal fell apart after he excelled on loan last season. The Parkhead boss is keen to bring in a new keeper and has been in talks with former England stopper Joe Hart after Craig Gordon also left the Scottish champions, returning to Hearts for the promise of more game time at Tynecastle. But Brown recalls Bain’s outstanding performance on his
Celtic debut in a 3-2 win against Rangers at Ibrox in March 2018 and believes the goalkeeper will be targeting a starting jersey regardless of who arrives as competition this summer. The Celtic captain said: ‘We would trust Scott Bain to do the business, definitely. ‘He came in and was brilliant for us when he arrived at the club. He was chucked in at the deep end at Ibrox when Dorus de Vries got injured the day before and he saved us that day, to be honest. ‘He kicked on from there and he was fantastic for us in that run in — as he has been whenever he’s been
asked to play. Bainy never lets anyone down and I’m sure he’ll step up if he plays this week, the next or whenever. ‘It’s not like he lost his place in the team. He injured his finger — you know what goalies are like with their fingers — and that was why he wasn’t in the team. ‘That’s how it is with keepers. Only one can play but he’s always worked hard in training and been ready whenever the call has come. ‘He’s a top goalkeeper, he is very composed with the ball at his feet and he’s a shot stopper. ‘He’s a good one to have and if he starts the season then I’m sure the lads would be delighted with that. ‘I’m sure he will be pushing himself regardless of whether someone else comes in or not to try and get that No1 jersey.’ Meanwhile, Brown has backed Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell’s calls for a phased return of supporters to matches within weeks. On Friday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised that English fans can return to sports stadia by October — only for the Scottish Government to warn there was no ‘imminent prospect’ of a date being set north of the border. But the Celtic captain hopes that having 5,000 fans at each friendly out in France against Nice, Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain can show Scotland the way ahead. ‘It will be good to be playing in front of fans again, even if the numbers are reduced,’ said Brown. ‘It would be great if they could be there for flag day (August 2) but the most important thing is getting through this (pandemic) as safely as possible. ‘The club are pushing for it as well and hopefully the fans will be back in as soon as possible. ‘Maybe these matches over in France will show it can be done and the Scottish authorities will be watching. ‘But, at Celtic, we have to win each week whether it’s in front of no fans or 60,000 fans. ‘We will need to do it the hard way but we look forward to getting the supporters back as we’ve certainly missed them.’