Celtic goalkeeper eyes No.1 role as 105-cap international legend nears end of career

Sinisalo has endured a challenging period at Parkhead after losing his Celtic place to Sam Johnstone for the Premier Sports Cup defeat to Rangers at Ibrox.

The 24-year-old was restored to Martin O’Neill’s starting XI for the league derby the following week, but came under criticism after parrying Kim Min-su’s effort into the path of Ryan Naderi for the only goal of the game.

Sinisalo has now turned his attention to international duty and earned his eighth Finland cap in their emphatic 7-0 Nations League victory over San Marino at the weekend.

The Celtic stopper is also one of Finland’s vice-captains and has his sights on eventually succeeding 36-year-old Monaco goalkeeper Hradecky, who has amassed 105 international caps.

Sinisalo said via The Herald: “It’s amazing to play for the national team and that’s what we all want to do. No matter who it’s against, it’s the ultimate honour and hopefully, there will be more games for me.

“Of course, Lukas Hradecky is a big figure in Finnish football and one of the greatest footballers of all time, not only as a goalkeeper but also as a person.

“He is a big player for us and will be for as long as he plays for the national team.

“Every day we try to learn, work together and make sure that we are the best national team possible.

“When you play for a big club like Celtic, you learn to take everything one game at a time and it’s the same with international football.

“You can’t really think beyond the next game.

“If the minutes come for me, I’m ready. If not, I’ll help as one of the vice-captains and be a good teammate and try to make sure that everyone is ready so that we can take points

“We are in the Finland shirt for the common good. That is the most important thing. If I get minutes, that is a great thing. If not, I am ready to support the team.”