WITH over 450 Celtic appearances to his name, as well as 102 goals, 101 assists, 11 league titles, six Scottish Cups and five League Cups, it’s safe to say that James Forrest will go down as a club great.
In an era marked by transient footballing careers, his commitment to the Hoops puts him alongside a very elite band of players, like skipper Callum McGregor, who know where they belong and wish to remain home.
Now aged 32, and no longer possessing the pace that he was blessed with in his younger years, a few eyebrows were raised last May when Forrest was given a three-year contract extension that will see his contract run until the summer of 2025. However, his role now extends beyond what he can do on the pitch.
As an experienced head, he is an example to new recruits and the youth lads to stay grounded and play for the jersey.
He’s not a natural leader in the shape of a Scott Brown, who can bark orders and ensure that nobody steps out of line. Instead, Jamesy takes a quiet, calm approach in demonstrating how to conduct yourself as a Celtic player and is a true embodiment of the club’s spirit.
It was therefore fantastic to see the appreciation that the support has for him on Tuesday as around 50,000 turned out at Paradise for his testimonial against Athletic Bilbao. The fresh-faced Bhoy who made his debut against Motherwell 13 years ago has come a long way and deserved to have his special night.
On the match itself, I’m going to use the old cliché of “it was a game of two halves”.
Athletic set the tone early on by taking the lead through Unai Gomez in the second minute, with Reo Hatate rifling home an equaliser. However, this was to be short lived after slack play from Tomoki Iwata was pounced upon by Iker Muniain, who lashed the ball beyond Benji Siegrist.
New signings Kwon and Maik Nawrocki were given their first starts, and while the Pole looked solid at the heart of defence, the 6ft 3in Korean had an evening to forget in midfield. He continually gave the ball away and wasn’t up to the pace of it at all. Hopefully not a sign of things to come.
There were big changes at the start of the second half as Oh, Alexandro Bernabei, Yang, Odin Holm, Liam Scales and David Turnbull were brought on.
Forrest, who had a quiet game, received a standing ovation when substituted in the 49th minute. It’s clear he’s not one who’s fussed about being the centre of attention, but when you can put your name among other one-club heroes such as Billy McNeill and Paul McStay, it’s only right that your contributions be recognised.
Celtic’s subs upped the pressure on the Spaniards and got their rewards after a wonderful passing move that was started by Bernabei, playing a lovely ball into Turnbull on the edge of the box. He then found Matt O’Riley and picked out the Argentine left-back who continued his run into the box and smashed a first-time effort through the legs of the keeper.
The Hoops weren’t done yet, though. This was an entertaining match for a friendly and a fantastic passage of play came down the wing through Yang and Anthony Ralston, with the right-back picking out Oh in the box, laying back for Turnbull who smashed in the winner from 12 yards out.
It was a great way to wrap up pre-season and attention now turns to flag day on Saturday against Ross County (kick-off 12.30pm).
The league opener brings an electric atmosphere and this won’t be any different. Of the new signings, I’d predict that only Nawrocki has a decent chance of starting as Carl Starfelt makes his way back from injury. The two Koreans need more time to adapt, and although Holm has looked very tidy, it’ll take time to oust either O’Riley or Hatate from the centre of the park.
And just on the transfer window, for me, it has been a tad underwhelming.
The stated ambition of wanting to make a mark in the Champions League hasn’t been matched with the level of spending thus far. That’s not to write off any of the new Bhoys, I understand what Celtic are trying to do in developing young players, but I thought a few so-called “statement” signings would have been made. They may still arrive, but we’re entering the final few weeks and the last thing supporters want is for it to fizzle out and then be told “we tried but couldn’t get deals over the line”.
As the manager said when he came back, the best time to strengthen is when you’re coming off success. Too often Celtic have been guilty of being “relaxed” (one of Peter Lawwell’s favourite words from over the years) and not translating domestic dominance into improvements on the European stage.
Along with retaining the title, this must be the focus of the upcoming campaign. The domestic cups? Honestly, this time around, I’m not bothered. Show the intent that this is a changed club and let’s see a few names who’ll get the fans off their seats.
