James Forrest Celtic talents never in question as Brendan Rodgers names key element

Brendan Rodgers has talked a great deal about writing stories over these past few weeks of a sometimes tumultuous campaign.

So it’s kind of fitting that he will place his faith in two men with a proven record of delivering silver linings in tomorrow’s final chapter. Callum McGregor and James Forrest have been over this course so many times before that it’s hard just to keep count. Between them they have lifted 44 trophies during a combined 24 years spent in the frontline as serial Celtic winners.

And they’ll be asked to go again one more time tomorrow when Rodgers sends his men out into battle for the last trophy of the season and a mouthwatering Scottish Cup Final showdown with city rivals Rangers. McGregor’s involvement as captain, of course, was never really in any doubt so long as stayed clear of the treatment table. Forrest, though, has fought his way off the fringes in recent weeks to claim centre stage after kicking his heels on the bench for most of the last three seasons.

And he’s done so with such energy and enthusiasm that he’s managed to play his way into Scotland’s squad for the Euros as a by-product. It does, however, beg a rather obvious question. Why has it taken Rodgers quite so long to reach the conclusion that, even at the age of 32, Forrest was being so routinely underutilised, for so long?

And, as the Parkhead boss returned to Hampden yesterday to get the countdown started, he was probably asking himself the same question. “It’s an interesting one,” Rodgers mused when asked about the veteran winger’s crucial contribution over the critical, closing stretch of the campaign.

“I looked back over the last few years and James was an important member of the squad, but maybe wasn’t the starter he once was. If you look at Liel Ababa and Daizen Maeda and Jota there were the players that were in front of him

“He still had a very important part to play, even though the game time might not be so much. And then we start this season again where he has been on the periphery at the beginning because of those players.

“Then Liel moved on and Daizen was injured and I always felt James was a top class player. As the season went on and as I watched him more in training, I then had to make a decision – and the decision for the team and for the club was that he had to play

GET MORE NEWS HERE