MEDAL OF HONOURS
Forrest: 12 medals at 26? I’ll wait until I’m done before I count up and celebrate all my honours
Twelve winner’s medals for Celtic at just 26.
And now up there with a Lisbon Lion Bobby Lennox after scoring in three League Cup Finals.
But until James Forrest hangs up his boots at Parkhead he won’t truly appreciate what he has achieved.
The Hoops winger refuses to tally up his trophy haul.
Success at his boyhood club is boxed up in his flat while he focuses on the NEXT piece of silverware he wants to lift.
He might not shout it from the rooftops but Forrest has a burning desire to be relentless in his pursuit of more glory at Celtic.
Getting his hands on the League Cup after beating Motherwell last weekend took him past legendary figure Neil Lennon in medal terms.
And it also put him in the company of the iconic Lennox, a 1967 European Cup hero.
But as Forrest prepares for a Champions League clash with Anderlecht, he’s refusing to get carried away.
He could go on to become one of the most decorated players in the club’s history – and says he can’t envisage playing for any other team.
Forrest, who bagged a double in yesterday’s 5-1 league win over Well, said: “I’m still only 26 and I heard that I’ve now got 12 major medals. But you don’t sit and count them.
“At Celtic, when you play in a final, you’ve normally got a game a few days later. So you just win it and move on. But obviously it was nice to hear that. I’m hungry for more.
“And at a club like Celtic, that’s what you want to do.
“Probably at the end of my career I’ll sit down and look back at what I’ve won. There’s so much going on just now with all the big games.
“But it’s nice and it’s why you’re in the game. You want to win trophies
and be successful. When you come through at Celtic the dream is to make your debut. But there’s always a next step here.
“And you never want to stop. I want to keep going and see where it takes me.
“I’ve been in the first team for seven years and only Scott Brown is still here from when I made my debut.
“The amount of players who have come and gone is scary. There have been ups and downs but it has been really enjoyable.
“It’s hard to imagine myself playing for another club. I’ve been here since I was nine so anywhere but Celtic would feel strange.
“I’ve always wanted to commit my future. You’re always going for titles and cups, as well as the Champions League. I want to be part of that.
“It’s a massive club so they’ll always bring in players of di f ferent nationalities.
“If the manager’s not having you, he can change it and bring in his own players.
“You have to be on your game to stay here and that drives me on.
“I know where all my medals are. I’m not one for framing stuff but it’s great to have so many.
“They’re all different and the most important one is always the next. When you win one, you just want the next one. And it was great to match Bobby’s record by scoring in three League Cup Finals.”
For r e s t h a s h a i l e d h i s performances this season as some of the best of his career. Yet at the start of the campaign, with the return of £12million winger Patrick Roberts, his place in Brendan Rodgers’ side looked under threat. But the Scotland star says the presence of the Englishman, who has now been ruled out for months with injury, has spurred him on. And that culminated in dazzl ing displays a ga inst the l ikes of Bayern Munich in the Champions League. He said: “It’s the same every season at Celtic in terms of competition.
“We have a big squad and the manager has a lot of players.
“But we also have a lot of games and he changes it . That ’ s good for everyone. If boys are struggling or tired, he can mix it up. So I’ve worked hard every day.
“It’s probably no-coincidence that competing with boys like Patrick has brought the best out in me.
“It makes you realise that you have to be at it every single day. If you’re not, someone will take your place.
“Everyone’s replaceable. That drives you on. When you look at the squad there are two or three internationals for every position. That helps everyone.
“It has been a great start to the season for the team and for me personally. The Bayern game was really good, I enjoyed it and the fans were unbelievable that night.
“We were gutted to lose 2-1 after the way we played but we now need a massive push against Anderlecht on Tuesday.”
Avoiding a heavy defeat against the Belgians would put Celtic in the Europa League and rek indle memories of their famous run to the final in Seville 14 years ago.
Forrest was a youth player on the books at Parkhead during Martin O’Neil l ’s time at the club – but revealed he missed most of their defeat to Porto because he was playing a game himself. He said: “That was a memorable year for the club, a special season.
“The youth team boys would always be helping the kitman or be ball-boys for the big European nights – and some of the games were incredible.
“Did I see the final? I’m sure we had a game that night and didn’t get to watch it! We maybe got in for the extra-time against Porto.”