Hampden’s role in Sinisalo getting big move to Celtic

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The Celtic Star

·19. April 2025

Hampden’s role in Sinisalo getting big move to Celtic

Unlike the Celtic support, our goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo will not be fazed if tomorrow’s Scottish Cup semi-final goes to penalties…

Celtic v Hearts, Scottish Premiership 29/03/2025. Celtic goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo during the match between Celtic and Hearts at Celtic Park, on 29 March 2025. Photo Malcolm Mackenzie/PSI

Of course the 23 year-old Finland international wants to get the job done in 90 minutes to book Celtic’s place in next month’s final but at least we know that he is ready.

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Penalty shoot-outs

Celtic have rather unusually been involved in two penalty shoot outs at the National stadium over the past year and won. Aberdeen lost out in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup last season, then theRangers were beaten in the Premier Sports League Cup Final shoot-out back in December with first Joe Hart then Kasper Schmeichel playing decisive roles in the Celtic victories.

Here’s the shoot-out in last season’s Scottish Cup semi-final against Aberdeen. Before watching, can you name all the players who took a penalty for Celtic?

“I watch a lot of football so I actually watched that game last year. I know Harty missed then went on to save the penalty,” Sinisalo said at yesterday’s media conference. “You go from a huge down to being the hero about thirty seconds later. If I have to take a penalty, I’ll take a penalty. I’m sure there’ll be lads taking one before me!

“I’ll try and stick to saving them then if it comes to it, I’ll take one”

“I’ll try and stick to saving them then if it comes to it, I’ll take one. But we’ll see if we get to that. I hit a couple on the training pitch on Friday, just to practise a little bit. I’m sure every goalkeeper has practised or taken one. I actually took one in a game for Finland Under-16s against Spain. It was in a penalty shootout and I scored but saving penalties is more important to me than scoring them.”

Celtic v Hearts, Scottish Premiership 29/03/2025. Celtic goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo during the match at Celtic Park, on 29 March 2025. Photo Malcolm Mackenzie PSI

During last season playing for Exeter City in League One on loan from Aston Villa, Sinisalo saved three penalties and considers this particular aspect of his game to be one of his strongest. “I want to say so, yeah. It’s really important because you can bail your team out. We do so much work with the goalkeeper coaches, wherever you are, whatever club you’re at.

‘Attackers know what keepers are thinking’

“Especially here with Stevie Woods we do so much to know where the opposition player might be going and how you could get him to go a certain way or something like that. There’s so much in football nowadays but it goes the other way as well. Attackers know what keepers are thinking. It’s a bit of a mind game so let’s see. If I have to save some, I’ll do my best to try and do so.”

Viljami Sinisalo also spoke about coming off the bench at half-time for Finland against Scotland and how that indirectly could have helped him get the move to Celtic Park.

Viljami Sinisalo after Daniels Balodis of St Johnstone scored to give St Johnstone a 1-0 lead. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Premiership, , McDiarmid Park, Perth, 06 April 2025: Photo Stuart Wallace/IMAGO Shutterstock

You’re thinking ‘I’ve just come on and I’ve conceded two’

“I wasn’t expecting to come on. Our keeper got injured right before half-time and I had a tap on the shoulder in the dressing room right before I came on to say ‘Vil, you’re coming on’. It all happened quite quickly. I got into the game, there was an early save then Scotland went 2-0 up early doors. You’re thinking ‘I’ve just come on and I’ve conceded two’. We managed to get a decent result and I had a few decent saves towards the end.

“I probably knew of the interest then. The season was still very much going on for me at that time. I’d just come off the back of a season at Exeter and it was only nine days later we played against Scotland. You’d still not switched off yet and you weren’t thinking of the next season yet. I probably knew of something, probably seen something written or something like that.

11th August 2024 Easter Road, Scottish Premiership, Hibernian versus Celtic – Viljami Sinisalo of Celtic. ActionPlus Vagelis Georgariou

“It probably didn’t do me any harm playing against Scotland”

“But it was very much me trying to just do my best and if something happened then something happened. It probably didn’t do me any harm playing against Scotland though! Then four or five weeks later I found myself signing for Celtic. So it really happened quite quickly. But I’ve got fond memories of Hampden.

“I loved playing there. I’ve been on the bench the two times we’ve played there previously this season and now I’ve got a chance to put the jersey on there myself. I’m very much relishing that opportunity.”

Bergamo, Italy, 23rd October 2024. Viljami Sinisalo and Alistair Johnston of Celtic applaud the fans following the final whistle of during the UEFA Champions League match at Stadio di Bergamo, Bergamo. Photo Jonathan Moscrop / Sportimage

Here’s Viljami Sinisalo’s Media Conference ahead of tomorrow’s Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden…

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