Celtic were reportedly interested in Nick Pope in the summer of 2016 – could he be Craig Gordon’s long-term successor?
Nick Pope was a man in demand in the summer of 2016 despite Charlton Athletic’s relegation form the Championship. According to the Coventry Telegraph, Celtic were interested along with Burnley and Leeds United.
Burnley could offer Premier League football after winning promotion back to the big league while Celtic were able to put the rather attractive proposition of European nights at Parkhead on the table.
Eventually, however, The Clarets won the race to sign the goalkeeper, who was a rare shining light in an otherwise dismal Charlton season in 2015/16, the Addicks finishing 22nd in the Championship and Pope managing to preside over just six clean sheets.
And though Pope has been forced to wait for his chance thanks to the form of England international Tom Heaton at Turf Moor, the 25-year-old now has the chance to prove that he does indeed belong in the Premier League.
The former Arsenal youngster made his long awaited top flight debut last week when Heaton suffered a serious shoulder injury. And, with the Burnley number one out for around four months, Pope will be a regular fixture between the sticks for the foreseeable future.
Pope’s divine intervention
And he could hardly have made a better first impression, making a number of fine stops to help Burnley earn an excellent point away to Liverpool on Saturday.
“He’s learning all the time and improving,” manager Sean Dyche told Sky Sports.
Therefore, Celtic should perhaps keep tabs on Pope with veteran 34-year-old Craig Gordon arguably in need of more secure back-up. Brendan Rodgers’ former Swansea City favourite Dorus de Vries is even older at 36 and hardly convinced when starting last season in place of Gordon (below).
De Vries made a number of high-profile errors, though it was injury that eventually handed Gordon his place back.
However, the early signs are that Pope is a keeper with Premier League quality, though he is likely to lose his place again as soon as Heaton is fit, no matter how well he performs.
Therefore, with Celtic needing to plan for life after Gordon in the foreseeable future, they could do worse than to keep an eye out on their one-time target.
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