Bonner warns Forster against being tempted to move south
Celtic go on to beat Hibs, so it’s no surprise that he is being considered by clubs in england.”
Bonner feels the 25-year-old from Hexham might still make the england team due to the exposure he gets at Celtic. “It’s up to him at the end of the day,” said Bonner, “But he has got a lot going for him up here in scotland. He has the chance to play Champions League football every season, he’s with a massive club and he is in the public eye, so has a high profile. It all depends on hopefully next season, that it takes anything away from your game in any way.
“Playing for Celtic actually suits a goalkeeper who plays international football because for long spells you don’t have a lot to do and you have to maintain your concentration levels. It’s a completely different way of playing but that’s what Fraser has to do in almost every match he plays for Celtic.
“He won’t have to deal with 100 shots or take 20 crosses in a match, as he’d maybe have to do with another club, so
“Playing for Celtic actually suits a goalkeeper who plays international football” Pat Bonner
things. I hope he stays and sees Celtic as an important club for him to remain at the top.
“Like any goalkeeper, it takes time to settle in at a club and he had to work on certain aspects of his game. But he has done that and he knows now what it takes to play for Celtic.
“I don’t know what the next step is for him, but what he did very well was pick up on the things his coaches wanted him to do better. He’s a bright lad.
“I’ve spoken to him a few times and I think he realised he had to pick up on a few issues.
“He also knows that he can play at the very highest level and when he does have a dip in form, he can use that knowledge as a pathway to get back into the groove again. That’s important – once you know what you’ve done well and you CAN perform at that level and make the saves at that level, I think it is easier thereafter.”
Bonner also sounded a well-intentioned warning about the possible reality of signing for Paolo di Canio’s team.
“He could go down to england, sign for sunderland and be fighting relegation,” said Bonner. “That’s another issue for him to be thinking about. The grass is not always greener on the other side.”
should Forster stay, he would grow in confidence and become a “leader”, said Bonner.
“He has to become the leader now at the back. People now expect him to take on that role.”