Celtic winger James Forrest needed to start the season in form – and he’s done exactly that.
With Celtic now just ninety minutes away from reaching the group stages of the Champions League, Brendan Rodgers will surely doff his cap to James Forrest.
Without the winger, Celtic’s hopes of reaching the promised land of the Europe’s premiere club competition might have come unstuck even before they welcomed Kazakhstani outfit Astana to Parkhead on Wednesday.
After all, it was his thumping finish in Norway which sealed a nail-biting 1-0 success at Rosenborg in the previous round. And it must be remembered that it was Forrest’s looping cross which set up Scott Sinclair to open the scoring in that 2-0 win at Linfield in the first qualifying clash.
Yet, Forrest saved the best till Wednesday. Capping a super individual performance with a well-taken goal, the homegrown attacker shone as Celtic battered Astana 5-0 in Glasgow, all but securing their place in the competition proper.
And it’s fair to say his stand-out form in the seasons opening weeks could not have been better timed. After all, Forrest appeared to go into the campaign under more pressure than ever before at Parkhead.
The arrival of Jonny Hayes from Aberdeen, the only man nominated for the league’s Player of the Year award to not wear Celtic colours last season, appeared a major threat to Forrest’s role in the starting XI.
So far, Hayes has largely been restricted to a substitute’s role with Forrest enjoying some of his best form for a number of years.
Long may it continue. With Celtic aiming to go further in the Champions League next season, they cant have too many match winners and, on his day, Forrest is exactly that.
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