Viljami Sinisalo would be forgiven for feeling slightly aggrieved when Sam Johnstone was thrust into the Celtic XI last month.
Manager Martin O'Neill opted for the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee against both St Johnstone and Rangers, and while the call initially proved dividends, Johnstone flattered to deceive in the 3-0 defeat at Ibrox, with Sinisalo soon restored to the side.
The Finn, who joined Celtic from Aston Villa in summer 2024, felt a combination of both shock and surprise when it emerged that he was on the bench at McDiarmid Park.
"I'll put it bluntly, it was a surprise but that's ultimately a decision that's been made," Sinisalo said. "That's gone now, you can't really focus on it too much. It's down to me in terms of staying in the team.
"Like I said, performing in a manner that there isn't a conversation. I don't want there to be a conversation, that's the bottom line."
Sinisalo initially took over from Kasper Schmeichel as Celtic's No. 1 last season, helping his side win an unlikely domestic double.
The 25-year-old hasn't made any errors leading directly to goals, proving, more often than not, a safe pair of hands between the sticks.
"I've waited a long time and worked hard and played a lot of games now," he added. "Once you get a bit of taste of that, you don't want to let it go.
"It's what you want to do. It gives you that little fire in the belly and kind of say, this is my time now and I want that time to be now."
Although Sinisalo was surprised, perhaps angry, when Johnstone took his berth, he gets on well with the Englishman. In fact, they've known each other for almost a decade.
"It's funny because I was actually on trial as a 15-year-old when he was the number one at Aston Villa, on loan from Man United at the time. I trained with him when I was 15, before I even signed for Villa," Sinisalo revealed. "When I'm playing, he's there supporting me like everyone else is. We're so privileged in a way to be such a tight-knit group as goalies. It's so important it stays that way.
"If it's me playing, he's supporting me. If it's him playing, I'll be supporting him. It's no different to that.
"We both want to play. Don't get us wrong. When the other one plays, we understand that we need to support because it's such a difficult position and little things matter.
"We're talking centimetres, whether a goal goes in or whether it doesn't. Any help that you can get from your fellow goalies, the better.
"He's been a top keeper in his own career, playing for England and top level in the Premier League as well. He's a good guy. He's still a very good goalie.
"I'm talking of a goalie that only last season played in the Premier League. I want to stay in the team. It's no different to that. That's the main message."
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Sinisalo conceded five goals in Celtic's last European trip. Granted he saved a penalty on that fateful night in LASK, but a similar 5-1 defeat to Benfica on Thursday evening is the last thing on anyone's minds.
"We're facing a very good team here," he said. "They're a team full of internationals that not just get picked for their countries, they start for their countries and they're not just small footballing nations.
"It's a good side, but it's a game that you can really enjoy and relish. In a way, raise your levels. There's no better place to do that. Sometimes games like that force you to do that if you want to get something out of it.
"We're looking forward to it and maybe we can have a little think on what we've done well in Stuttgart or Feyenoord. I think Bologna as well, where we obviously went a man down, but we've played some really good stuff and defended well as a team because we're going to have to defend at times."
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