Kasper Schmeichel: Celtic fans blast ‘gross incompetence’ as goalkeeper confirms injury could end career
Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has confirmed that he may have played the last game of his career after revealing the extent of his injury issues.
The 39-year-old has been missing from Martin O’Neill’s squad since the start of March, with Viljami Sinisalo taking over in his absence.
Schmeichel has also withdrawn from Denmark’s World Cup play-off matches later this month, with his participation in the tournament, should they get there, now also ruled out.
The veteran goalkeeper has been the subject of heavy criticism at times this season, with frequent mistakes costing the Hoops.
Celtic’s injury issues have been a problem all season, with Schmeichel the latest to land on the injury table for the long term.
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Football Insider exclusively revealed in January that Celtic wanted to replace Schmeichel, but a replacement was not signed.
Sinisalo was seen as too inexperienced to take the starting role on a more consistent basis, although O’Neill has now been forced to hand the position to the 24-year-old.
| Kasper Schmeichel Status | Celtic Contingency Plan |
|---|---|
| Injuries Confirmed | Dislocated shoulder, torn bicep/rotator cuff |
| Recovery Timeline | 10-12 Months (Career in doubt) |
| January Action | Replacement identified but **not signed** |
| Current No. 1 | Viljami Sinisalo (24) |
Source: Football Insider Analysis
Celtic will likely look to sign a new goalkeeper in the summer, however, with Schmeichel now expected to leave at the end of his contract.
Speaking to CBS Sports on Tuesday, he revealed that he is facing 10-12 months of rehab after discovering significant injuries.
“I was at a specialist yesterday and basically I’m going to need two surgeries now to fix my shoulder, which is a bit of a body blow,” he explained.
“It’s a torn bicep, I’ve torn the rotator cuff, dislocated the shoulder, torn the labrum – torn everything.” “I could have potentially played my last ever football game,” he added.
Celtic fans were left furious by the news, although there were disagreements over who the blame should be attributed to.
“I am genuinely sorry that this may finish his career,” one fan wrote. “However, he has been playing with that for some time and has likely cost us. He should have declared earlier. I will leave it at that.”
More agreed with the statement, claiming that Schmeichel had cost Celtic by being too focused on making the World Cup with Denmark.
However, another fan wrote: “60k could see it, how could staff working with him every day [not]. Gross incompetence again!!”
X user Max wrote: “Our medical team needs [to be] punted for not stopping him from playing.”
When did Schmeichel’s injury issues begin?
After confirming his unavailability for Denmark’s World Cup play-off in an interview last week, Schmeichel revealed that the issues with his shoulder began last year.
The 39-year-old dislocated his shoulder against Portugal in March, but played on with no substitutions left in the game.
That has left him with issues in the shoulder, with the problems worsening in recent months.
When Celtic were beaten by Stuttgart in February, Schmeichel landed on his shoulder and damaged it further.
The Dane confirmed that he’d need a couple of months to recover but that time frame has now been extended to the best part of a year, likely putting an end to at least his Celtic career.
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