DUNDEE goalkeeper Scott Bain will play against one of his idols, Craig Gordon, today when his team take on Celtic, but that hasn’t stopped him from leaping to the defence of his opposite number.
The Celtic No 1 has come in for criticism for his role in conceding crucial goals from set-plays in the high-profile matches against Malmo, Aberdeen and Ajax, but Bain believes the flak aimed at the 43-times capped Scotland goalkeeper is severe.
“He’s a great goalkeeper and one I’ve always watched since I was a kid,” he said. “He’s had unfair criticism over the last couple of games, especially against Ajax. I think he got a bit of stick on the second goal but it’s a great ball in and one he can’t really go for. People that are screaming for him to come out and collect it are being very harsh. He’s played at the top level and been a top keeper for many, many years, so to criticise him is very wrong.”
Bain believes that uncertainty in the Celtic backline could have been caused by teething problems between Gordon and the new personnel in front of him, with the likes of Dedryck Boyata and Jozo Simunovic coming in and the central-defensive partnership being regularly changed in the opening weeks of the season. Once the situation in front of him settles down, Bain is sure Gordon will show doubters his class, as he did when he returned to stunning form after long-term injury last season.
“It’s for Celtic to work on, but I thought the criticism of him was unfair,” he said. “You’ve got to have confidence in each other. He should have confidence in his back four and I’m sure they’ve got confidence in him.
“Look, Scotland’s got good goalkeepers these days so for me it’s good to play against them, but also to watch them. To grow up watching the likes of Craig, Greegsy [Allan McGregor] and David Marshall, it’s great for me.
“You never lose it do you? Or so the older players keep telling me! Gordon’s seriously top class though.”
Dundee will be hoping to cause more problems for Celtic today as their below-par start to the league campaign has seen them fall five points behind leaders Aberdeen.
For Bain, Paul Hartley’s side have performed to expectations, and he’s relishing the chance to test himself again in an arena where he had mixed fortunes last term.
“I’m really looking forward to playing at Parkhead again,” he said. “I think that’s the place where you want to play. Since I came into this league it’s obviously the best stadium and the best place to play.
“Last season, one of the games was all right, we got beat 2-1 and were really unlucky. It was my first game at Parkhead.
“The second one though was 5-0. We didn’t play too well and gave away cheap goals.
“We’re hoping we can go there this time, frustrate them and try to get points.
“I think you’ve obviously got to have a bit of luck when you go to Parkhead. You’ve got to be brave on the ball and when you have the ball you’ve got to keep it. You’ve got to have confidence in yourself. But we can frustrate teams, be hard to break down and be hard to beat.
“We’ve done all right this season. It could have been better, we should have more points with some of the performances we’ve put in.
“I don’t know about the gaffer, but I think the boys are pleased so far, and hopefully we can kick on.”
Bain has excelled for Dundee since making his debut unexpectedly at the beginning of last season, when then No 1 Kyle Letheren pulled up injured in the warm-up before a match against Motherwell at Fir Park.
His fine form not only led to him claiming the gloves for his club, but earned him a Scotland call-up for the double-header against Qatar and the Republic of Ireland in June.
Unfortunately, he had to pull out of that squad through injury, but there will surely be another chance for the former Alloa Athletic man if he maintains his form.
He said: “It’s not something I think about day-to-day obviously, I just think about playing well for Dundee every week and if that leads me to a Scotland call-up again then that’s great. But if not, I just need to keep working hard and keep playing well here.”
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