Celtic has finalized the signing of Viljami Sinisalo from Aston Villa, as confirmed by sources at Football Insider. The Scottish club announced the 22-year-old goalkeeper has agreed to a five-year contract and he has already joined his new teammates.
Sinisalo, who hails from Finland, was seen at Glasgow Airport in a Celtic tracksuit as the team prepared to depart for their pre-season tour in the US. Football Insider had previously reported that Celtic had been in talks to secure another goalkeeper, in addition to Kasper Schmeichel.
Having spent last season on loan at Exeter City, Sinisalo impressed with 13 clean sheets in 45 League One appearances. He is expected to provide competition for Schmeichel initially, with the veteran goalkeeper likely to mentor his younger counterpart during their time at Celtic.
With Schmeichel approaching the latter stages of his career, Sinisalo could eventually take over as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper if he continues to develop. Celtic had been in need of a new goalkeeper following Joe Hart’s retirement, and now have two options to fill the void left by the former England international.
The pressure will be on both Sinisalo and Schmeichel to perform at a high level at Celtic Park, as they look to build on their success in the Scottish Premiership. Hart’s impressive record of 64 clean sheets in 153 matches will serve as a benchmark for the new goalkeeping duo.
