Pat Bonner explains why he was ‘surprised’ Viljami Sinisalo didn’t get his Celtic debut vs Hibernian

The reason behind Pat Bonner’s “surprisal” reaction when Viljami Sinisalo failed to make his Celtic debut against Hibs in the League Cup has been revealed.

After replicating their impressive start from Easter Road last week at Celtic Park yesterday, Brendan Rodgers’ team defeated Hibs 3-1 to secure their spot in the League Cup quarterfinals.

Daizen Maeda, the stand-in striker, scored twice, while Nicolas Kuhn added another goal as Celtic maintained their strong start to the new campaign.

But Viljami Sinisalo’s absence was what upset former Celtic goalkeeper Pat Bonner, who reveals why he was taken aback that the youthful Finnish international didn’t play his first game against the capital club.

Bonner is looking for the Celtic “qualities” of Sinisalo.
After Kasper Schmeichel gave up his first goal of the year to David Gray’s squad, Brendan Rodgers decided to keep the big Dane in goal.

To see what the 22-year-old could offer, Bonner was eager to watch Sinisalo make his first appearances for the Hoops.

“I was surprised, actually, that he didn’t play the custodian, Sinisalo, the young man that he brought in,” Bonner stated on BBC Radio Scotland.

What a great position to be third choice at Celtic, Scott Bain. Scott Bain, when is he going to play? What will be the question now is when he will get a game.

However, I would have preferred to see the other young custodian to determine whether or not he had the skills and self-assurance necessary to succeed as Celtic’s starting custodian in the coming years.

“It would be wonderful if the young man entered and took action.”

Take your time with Sinisalo’s Celtic debut.
There is still plenty of time for Sinisalo to make his Celtic debut, even though it makes sense that Bonner wanted to see the young player make his debut.

On August 18, 2024, in Glasgow, during the Premier Sports Cup match between Celtic and Hibernian at Celtic Park, Celtic’s Kasper Schmeichel is spotted.
Ian MacNicol took the picture/Getty Images
Despite playing at Celtic Park, Rodgers would not have wanted to take the chance of another early cup exit like he did last season, hence the match against Hibs was not the right time to start Sinisalo.

Furthermore, as Bonner correctly notes, Schmeichel still has to develop and be tested in this Celtic club, so it may have been counterproductive to bench the Danish international so early in the campaign.

With so many games remaining in the season, Sinisalo will likely make his debut soon, and the Hoops manager may view the quarterfinal matchup at Celtic Park versus Falkirk as the perfect opportunity to do so.