Craig Gordon was signed by Celtic when his career was going through a crisis as he was out with injuries and was without any club for close to two years after Sunderland released him. The move paid off for the Hoops as he has played a crucial role for the Glaswegian giants since joining the club in the 2014-15 season. The Scottish international has appeared in over 200 games for the Hoops and looks strong to go further.
However, Rodgers cannot ignore the fact that he is 35 and there are certain chinks in his armour which is being showcased this season. His contract runs until 2020, and we believe in the next year or so, Rodgers needs to sign a long-term replacement for Gordon. Here are three goalkeepers the Hoops can go after.
Freddie Woodman
The 21-year-old Newcastle United goalkeeper has failed to break into the senior Magpies squad, but we feel the Bhoys should consider this young talent. There have been reports of the Hoops keeping track of him and it would be interesting to see whether Rodgers makes a move for him in January now that the English custodian is in the final year of his contract.
The Hoops tried to get him even in the January transfer window earlier but he went on to join Aberdeen on loan. Woodman is a future superstar in the making and the current England u-21 international. The 21-year-old can be a real long-term replacement for Gordon. With Gordon set to stay until 2020, Woodman can learn from the veteran until then and from there onwards, he can take the mantle of the club’s no.1.
Simon Mignolet
The Belgian custodian has been looking for a way out of Liverpool ever since Alisson becker was brought in the club. Mignolet incidentally was signed by Brendan Rodgers from Sunderland and the experienced Belgian can be a decent bet for Rodgers once again. There have been critics of the 30-year-old over the past few years but his shot-stopping skills remain top notch. His distribution happens to be one of his weak points but he has improved on that front since he joined Liverpool in 2013. Rodgers kept his faith in the Belgian for the most part of his managerial stint and signing him won’t be a bad idea.
Predrag Rajkovic
The Serbian international is one of the rising goalkeepers of the world and at one time he was even linked with a move to Arsenal. Rajkovic currently plies his trade for Israeli outfit Maccabi Tel Aviv and the 22-year-old has all the qualities to his game which a top goalkeeper needs.
He is athletic, quick on his feet, has excellent reflexes and his distribution is also reasonable. In his young career, the Serbian has already managed 82 clean sheets playing for the likes of Tel Aviv, Red Star Belgrade and Jagodina Tabane. Celtic can consider him as a long-term replacement for Gordon.
