Viljami Sinisalo may not have yet made his competitive debut for Celtic but he’s already loving his experience at the Bhoys since his summer move from Aston Villa.
The Finn arrived for £1m, and while Celtic haven’t had a return on that investment quite yet, hopes are high that Celtic have a strategic plan in place for the shot-stopper.
Sinisalo has slotted into the squad as Kasper Schmeichel’s deputy, with the long-term aim of succeeding him as number one when the Danish international hangs up his gloves.
He always knew what his role would be when he arrived, with regular first-team football not on the cards for now, but he never hesitated about making the switch from the Villans.
Now, Sinisalo has shared he got the hard sell on a Celtic move way back in March when he was on loan at Exeter City working under former Bhoys defender Gary Caldwell.
Gary Caldwell urged Viljami Sinisalo to make Celtic move
Asked what the Exeter boss said to him before moving to Glasgow, Sinisalo said [Celtic TV]: “He was the first one to tap me up when the interest started early on back in March time.
“He was telling me, ‘You’ve got to do this. This is something that doesn’t come about a lot of times in your career, and when you get this opportunity, you’ve got to take it.’
“That was pretty much what everyone else said when I spoke to them about the interest. There wasn’t really a doubt in my mind. This was going to be the destination I was heading to.
He was very complimentary about the club. He said I’m going to sign for the best club in the world, so they were very fond words.”
Sinsisalo’s competitive debut timeline
There’s an opportunity for Celtic to make an appearance for the Bhoys in a friendly next month when Brendan Rodgers takes his team to Ireland to face Sligo Rovers.
However, Sinisalo may be left waiting on a competitive debut if, fingers crossed, Schmeichel stays injury-free.
The Finn has missed out on the early rounds of the Scottish League Cup and is unlikely to be thrust into the semi-final at Hampden, or the final if Celtic make it past Aberdeen.
The initial stages of the Scottish Cup now look like the prime opportunity to give Sinisalo a chance in this Celtic team and Rodgers’ side don’t enter that competition until mid-January.
