Forster for England? Not yet, says Bonner

The 23-year-old's fine displays between the sticks have had Neil Lennon touting him for a call-up for the Euro 2012 finals in the summer.

Bonner, who juggled club duties with international commitments for 15 years in his own distinguished career and knows all about what is required to succeed at the highest level, agrees but says Forster has some improving to do. The Donegal-born player was capped 80 times for the Republic of Ireland and represented them with distinction at a European Championships and two World Cups.

The 51-year-old, who stood down as technical director of the Footaball Association of Ireland at the end of last year, is confident the 6ft 7in goalkeeper is good enough to go all the way to the very top.

"The big goalkeeper has done well this season," Bonner said of Forster who is own loan from Newcastle United for the second season in a row. "I spoke to Fraser a wee while back and it seemed to me that his confidence is high. I think he is more alert to the game and is making better decisions than he was last season. I think a goalkeeper needs to get a few really good games under his belt to succeed at Celtic and he has managed to do that this season.

"He had the penalty save against Hearts and he had a really good game against Udinese away in Italy in the Europa League. I watched that game on television when I was out in Cyprus and thought he made some terrific saves. When you are at a club like Celtic, you have to get those games in your locker so that, down the line, you are allowed to make the odd mistake."

"If you come to a club like Celtic or Rangers and get off to a bad start and make mistakes then things can be hard for you. You don't have the history to back you up.

"Now he has some outstanding performances in his locker I think he is much more confident. He knows that if he goes out and makes a mistake then he can just say: 'Well, so what?' He can put it behind him and get on with it.

"But he has a bit to go before he can consider international football. What he has to concentrate on now is establishing himself as first choice at Celtic and winning trophies and championships.

"If he does that, then, yes, eventually international recognition will come. But I wouldn't be burdening his shoulders with that too quickly at this stage."

The dearth of top quality English goalkeepers has surprised Bonner and he sees no reason why Forster cannot feature in the future.

"Whether Fraser can get into the England squad depends on the manager the FA appoints and how he views a player who plies his trade in Scotland," he reflected.

"But if you look at the stats down in England they have maybe three goalkeepers in the Barclays Premier League. They are lucky they have Joe Hart as I think he is going to be around for the next 10 years or so. But they only have a couple of others to pick from.

"It is quite interesting if you compare the stats to other European countries. Germany, for example, have a huge number of German goalkeepers playing in the Bundesliga.

"The same is true of Spanish goalkeepers in the Spanish leagues and Italian goalkeepers in the Italian leagues. But the opposite is the case in England. Any English goalkeeper who is doing well, no matter where he is playing, will be in the shop window. If Fraser maintains his current form then he should come into the reckoning."

Bonner, currently working as a pundit for BBC and ESPN, feels the Celtic defence also deserves plaudits for Forster's displays. He said: "It's not just down to the goalkeeper, the whole backline should get credit. They are far more settled now."

Central to that solidity has been Charlie Mulgrew, who has just been named player of the month for February. Neil Lennon's decision to bring the defender back to the club that had jettisoned him four years earlier raised eyebrows but Mulgrew has gradually won over the critics, so much so that he is a strong candidate to succeed Emilio Izaguirre as Scotland's player of the year.

Lennon said yesterday: "The Player of the Month is a reward and Charlie thoroughly deserved his award.

"He has been magnificent for the last three or four months, culminating in his call-up to the Scotland squad. Charlie epitomises this squad in terms of where we have come from me taking over.

"He came here on a free transfer but you look at him now and can't see him not being in the team. That is a credit to him and to his consistency and his talent."

Pat Bonner believes Fraser Forster is capable of one day challenging for a place in the England set-up but says he is still some way off a call-up by his national team.

The 23-year-old's fine displays between the sticks have had Neil Lennon touting him for a call-up for the Euro 2012 finals in the summer.

Bonner, who juggled club duties with international commitments for 15 years in his own distinguished career and knows all about what is required to succeed at the highest level, agrees but says Forster has some improving to do. The Donegal-born player was capped 80 times for the Republic of Ireland and represented them with distinction at a European Championships and two World Cups.

The 51-year-old, who stood down as technical director of the Footaball Association of Ireland at the end of last year, is confident the 6ft 7in goalkeeper is good enough to go all the way to the very top.

"The big goalkeeper has done well this season," Bonner said of Forster who is own loan from Newcastle United for the second season in a row. "I spoke to Fraser a wee while back and it seemed to me that his confidence is high. I think he is more alert to the game and is making better decisions than he was last season. I think a goalkeeper needs to get a few really good games under his belt to succeed at Celtic and he has managed to do that this season.

"He had the penalty save against Hearts and he had a really good game against Udinese away in Italy in the Europa League. I watched that game on television when I was out in Cyprus and thought he made some terrific saves. When you are at a club like Celtic, you have to get those games in your locker so that, down the line, you are allowed to make the odd mistake."

"If you come to a club like Celtic or Rangers and get off to a bad start and make mistakes then things can be hard for you. You don't have the history to back you up.

"Now he has some outstanding performances in his locker I think he is much more confident. He knows that if he goes out and makes a mistake then he can just say: 'Well, so what?' He can put it behind him and get on with it.

"But he has a bit to go before he can consider international football. What he has to concentrate on now is establishing himself as first choice at Celtic and winning trophies and championships.

"If he does that, then, yes, eventually international recognition will come. But I wouldn't be burdening his shoulders with that too quickly at this stage."

The dearth of top quality English goalkeepers has surprised Bonner and he sees no reason why Forster cannot feature in the future.

"Whether Fraser can get into the England squad depends on the manager the FA appoints and how he views a player who plies his trade in Scotland," he reflected.

"But if you look at the stats down in England they have maybe three goalkeepers in the Barclays Premier League. They are lucky they have Joe Hart as I think he is going to be around for the next 10 years or so. But they only have a couple of others to pick from.

"It is quite interesting if you compare the stats to other European countries. Germany, for example, have a huge number of German goalkeepers playing in the Bundesliga.

"The same is true of Spanish goalkeepers in the Spanish leagues and Italian goalkeepers in the Italian leagues. But the opposite is the case in England. Any English goalkeeper who is doing well, no matter where he is playing, will be in the shop window. If Fraser maintains his current form then he should come into the reckoning."

Bonner, currently working as a pundit for BBC and ESPN, feels the Celtic defence also deserves plaudits for Forster's displays. He said: "It's not just down to the goalkeeper, the whole backline should get credit. They are far more settled now."

Central to that solidity has been Charlie Mulgrew, who has just been named player of the month for February. Neil Lennon's decision to bring the defender back to the club that had jettisoned him four years earlier raised eyebrows but Mulgrew has gradually won over the critics, so much so that he is a strong candidate to succeed Emilio Izaguirre as Scotland's player of the year.

Lennon said yesterday: "The Player of the Month is a reward and Charlie thoroughly deserved his award.

"He has been magnificent for the last three or four months, culminating in his call-up to the Scotland squad. Charlie epitomises this squad in terms of where we have come from me taking over.

"He came here on a free transfer but you look at him now and can't see him not being in the team. That is a credit to him and to his consistency and his talent."