4. Ability
Theres no question that Fraser Forster has ability. Anyone who watched his performances against Barcelona will be able to tell you that. However, Celtic fans have seen him put in equally impressive if not better performances over his three years with the club. Matches against Udinese, St. Mirren and Hearts were some of his finest in a Celtic jersey as he made several sensational saves in each match somehow deny the opposition. Sometimes Forster can be so good its difficult to quite believe what youre watching. He has the ability to win matches almost single handedly which is a rare quality that only the best keepers have. While most Celtic fans have believed Forster was a top-quality goalkeeper for several seasons now. It has taken others a little longer to recognize his talents. But now that he has made a name for himself on the international stage he is receiving plaudits from all across Europe. From his home country both England coach Gary Neville and ex-England goalkeeper Peter Shilton have said that he is good enough to challenge Joe Hart for the number 1 jersey. While Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp has gone a step further in describing him as a world-class keeper. Ex-Celtic and Ireland legend Paddy Bonner has also praised Forster by saying that he is a top-class keeper and good enough to play for England and become a Celtic legend. From Europe, Italian keeper Gianluigi Buffon possibly the greatest Goalkeeper of the modern era - has said that
he thinks Forster is good enough to be one of the best goalies in the world. Spanish newspaper El Mundo Deportivo also praised him when they published the above picture after his performance against Barcelona. They described him as La Gran Muralla The Great Wall as he looked almost unbeatable in the Celtic goal in helping them to beat Barcelona 2-1. Of course it hasnt always been so easy for Forster, during his first season at Celtic he failed to win over some fans who felt he wasnt assertive enough. But even during that first season the virtually unknown Geordie made a string of incredible saves. Heres a video showing one of them; from the League Cup Final against Rangers. On this occasion he goes to save a Nikica Jelavic free-kick but it takes a deflection of the wall. He somehow manages to regain his balance and stick out an arm to tip the ball over the bar. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n2chKviCVQ This save shows off some of Forsters best attributes. His reflexes are incredible, he has sensational agility especially considering hes 6ft 7in, and he is an immensely powerful shot-stopper. Along with this his kicking is incredible; he is able to launch the ball well into the opposition half with either foot. He has also improved his handling a lot during his time at Celtic and has gotten much better at claiming aerial balls. His height also helps make him very dominant in this aspect and he claims most of the crosses that come near him during games. Although Forster is certainly a good keeper, this does not necessarily make him a better choice as Englands number 1 than Hart. There are three other reasons why the Celtic goalie deserves the position.