Forster is mindful of a duty of care

Sunday 5 August 2012

CELTIC will have an artificial surface to contend with in Helsinki on Wednesday night but there is nothing contrived about the magnitude of what is at stake for the club in the Finnish capital.

Fraser Forster is the only signing Celtic have made this summer

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Stewart Fisher and Alison McConnell

The Parkhead outfit travel to HJK's Sonera Stadium with a slender 2-1 lead to protect in the second leg of their third-round Uefa Champions League qualifier, knowing that victory in the tie would keep alive their dreams of returning to the continent's premier club competition, and guarantee them European football in some shape or form until Christmas at least, as reaching the final qualifying round comes with a parachuted place into the Europa League for those who fail to progress.

The 10,000-capacity stadium in Helsinki has a Fifa two-star pitch, and Neil Lennon's side will train on the artificial surfaces at Lennoxtown tomorrow in order to best prepare themselves. The change of turf will be an unpredictable variable against a side who will train and compete on the surface on a daily basis, but at least Celtic have history on their side. The last time they played on a plastic pitch in Europe – or indeed anywhere – Gordon Strachan's Parkhead side drew with Spartak Moscow en route to the group stages of the Champions League in 2007, knocking the Russian side out of the tournament following a dramatic penalty shoot-out in the return leg at Celtic Park.As pleased as he was with much of his team's performance last midweek, Lennon was cautious about the rematch last night. Although the club have a poor historical away record which pre-dates his time as manager, they performed well on their travels against Rennes and Udinese in the Europa League last season. "This game is not straightforward," the Northern Irishman said. "They have beaten Schalke at home last season. And with our away record – we are very unpredictable away from home."Few men will have more to adjust to in the hours leading up to the game than goalkeeper Fraser Forster. For a keeper in particular there is always the potential for embarrassment given the different bounce of the ball, but the 24-year-old – currently the club's only bona fide signing of the summer, when he finally made his loan deal from Newcastle permanent – is unperturbed at the thought of performing on the unpopular surface. "I don't know whether they'll put water on it or not and it might be a case that balls skid through to you, but it'll just be a case of adapting as best we can," Forster said.The aches and pains afterwards will be nothing compared to the bruising Celtic will feel should they fail to progress towards the next qualifying hurdle. Reaching the group stages has become a holy grail for the club, particularly given the altered circumstances around Scottish football this season. Not only do the financial spoils of the lucrative competition hold considerable appeal for those who do the number crunching behind the scenes, but it is a more basic attraction for the players themselves. "We all want to play in it, to test ourselves against the best players in the world," explained Forster. Celtic wasted chances in the opening leg of the tie and, in all likelihood, will need to find the net in Helsinki to progress. The Finns were content to sit back at Celtic Park – but still snatched a valuable away goal – and Neil Lennon's side will hope to exploit any gaps if HJK approach this leg more openly. "I'd fancy us to score against anyone with the players we've got," said Forster. "We looked very threatening going forward, Hoops got a good goal – a typical [Gary] Hooper goal – but we have got that capability and it is just showing that belief, and having the confidence to go and press them a bit."Lennon expects a change of approach from his opposite number Antti Muurinen this week. "They are a good side at home and they will be more attack-minded," Lennon said. "They changed their system last week but they will go back to the way they normally play, a 4-4-2 or with just one off the striker. Their wide men come in to make it narrow and they try to get their width from their full-backs. Playing on that surface may make me think about how we approach the game tactically. It is a huge game and has been in the forefront of my mind since the end of May. So there is a lot resting on Wednesday, for me personally to take the team on and the players themselves to enhance the season for themselves."The Northern Irishman is still searching for a centre-half and a centre-forward during this window and knows Champions League cash would come in handy. Bringing in another central defender would help free Victor Wanyama to take up a midfield berth which Lennon feels is his more natural home. "Victor gives me food for thought each game," he said. "But generally I'd use Victor in midfield, all things being equal. I think he's come back even better than last year although it's very early days." Indeed it is. But one way or another Wednesday night, and a patch of Finnish plastic, will go some distance towards defining Celtic's season.

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