The Celtic anomaly that underlines transfer necessity as old adage comes to the fore in keeper hunt

Artur Boruc set the Champions League gold standard and Fraser Forster upped the ante when dubbed The Great Wall.

Craig Gordon broke the heart of every team in Scotland as an Invincible and Joe Hart melted the heart of every fan with his emotional and successful farewell. Celtic’s hit-rate with goalkeepers in the past two decades has been absolutely vital in their sustained period of success. And, as Brendan Rodgers works to strengthen his squad for the next stage of his second Parkhead term, the No.1 priority and the No.1 task is to get the No.1 right.

For all the terrific signings, attacking showstoppers, striking heroes, midfield class acts and defensive stalwarts, trophy triumphs have been built on a top-class keeper. It’s no coincidence that, in the one season over the past 13 when Celtic didn’t win the title and flopped to win nothing, it was the one time they got it wrong. Vasilis Barkas was an error. Or perhaps the wrong man in the wrong movie. The Greek wasn’t the only one responsible for that miserable Covid term, but it’s not an accident the one flop season was connected to that flop signing.

The old adage says a good keeper is worth 10 points a season and, in Forster’s case, can get you Champions League wins into bargain. It was the Spanish media who gave the Georgie his nickname of La Gran Muralla after the phenomenal performance against Lionel Messi’s Barcelona which led to the famous 2-1 win. Forster’s task when he first arrived was unenviable, in the fact he had to take over from Boruc.

Colourful, controversial, no doubt the reason for several Gordon Strachan grey hairs, but brilliant and just the type of character needed for the job. He’d set the precedent for Forster in terms of Europe’s top table. His penalty-kick save from Louis Saha ensured Shunsuke Namakuar’s dreamy 2006 free-kick would be the matchwinner as Celtic defeated Manchester United in the group stages of the Champions League to move into the last 16.

Forster took on the mantle and lifted the levels. When Jonny Hayes flashed a shot beyond him for Aberdeen, it was the first goal the Englishman had lost in 14 games and 1,256 minutes as he set records and cemented his place as a Celtic hero. Gordon came in after him with Hayes a future team-mate and, despite the doubts given his injury record prior to signing, the Scotland star delivered spectacularly. Ironically, his one short spell out of the team came when Rodgers himself moved to sign Dorus De Vries. The Dutchman played in the 5-1 win over Rangers which marked the manager’s first Old Firm game and win during his first spell.

However, his future was as a back-up with Gordon soon back to play his full part in the campaign which ended with three trophies and not a single domestic defeat. Scott Bain signed after a Gordon injury, but Forster quickly returned and performed as if he’d never been away.

Miracle displays against Lazio in the Europa League and Rangers in a Betfred Cup Final were unforgettable. Barkas had tough acts to follow and, quite simply, never looked up to it, which left Ange Postecoglou with another problem on his giant to-do list entering the building.

The Aussie needed a No.1 and Hart was snared. No question, there were doubters at the time amongst the Celtic support, questions raised as to why a veteran whose best days appeared behind him was being handed a three-year contract and given the gloves. Hart spent the next three years showing everyone why Postecoglou made that move and, by the time he left, fans were displaying huge banners and doing displays in his honour.

Now Celtic are back in that same place of three years ago, yet the track record over almost 20 years is there and it needs to be upheld. Rodgers is the man, but Stevie Woods, the trusted goalie coach who has drawn incredible praise from Gordon, Forster and Hart, will no doubt play a role Ex-Celt Charlie Mulgrew had the privilege of playing in front of Forster and Gordon and said: “You need to know how to cope with that pressure.

“Joe Hart has just left, and with the legacy he has left at Celtic, the next goalkeeper is going to be under pressure. Being No.1 goalkeeper with that pressure on your shoulders constantly, you have got to get the right one in and I’d imagine Woodsy and the rest of them will be working away at that. It’s not easy to get a good goalkeeper in. You need to do your homework, and once you find the one, there are probably two or three others that will be looking for him. Hopefully, he chooses Celtic, but it’s not an easy thing to do I’d imagine.”

Rodgers has plenty of areas to strengthen. He’ll likely be looking for a top-class centre-back to boost the backline and a left-back to take some weight off Greg Taylor. He’s going to need to find some quality for the middle of the park, especially if Matt O’Riley leaves the building.

And he’s going to need striking provisions with, as it stands, Kyogo Furuhashi the only hitman of note at the club until he gets Adam Idah in the door on a full-time basis. But, above all else, the keeper is the key. If Celtic want to stay as the No,1 club in the country, they again have to get No.1 pick spot on.