James Forrest keen to stay with Celtic despite English link

James Forrest has delivered a massive boost to Neil Lennon’s plans to shape a Celtic squad capable of sustaining a prolonged Champions League campaign, by stating that he wants to stay at the Parkhead club next season.

The Celtic winger picked up the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year award on Sunday night at the annual dinner in Glasgow, as his peers recognised the form which has attracted attention from south of the Border. Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp confirmed in January he was looking at the Scotland winger but the 20-year-old has no intention of leaving Celtic Park just yet and, indeed, he believes the lure of European football’s elite club competition will help Lennon keep his championship-winning squad intact.

“It is good that teams are watching me,” said Forrest. “It means I’m doing well but I’m happy at Celtic and I want to get Celtic into the Champions League.

“I don’t think anybody will want to leave, we know there is a couple of qualifiers and we could be in the Champions League so we are going to give it our all. It is a young team and the experience we got from the Europa League this season will definitely help us.

“It was my first European campaign and I managed to play in every game and that’s what you want to do, play in big games and test yourself. I think we gave a good account of ourselves.

“It is a different type of game but I think we could easily have gone through (from the group) this year but it wasn’t to be and hopefully as I said, it gives us experience for next season.”

Despite picking up his first Clydesdale Bank Premier League winners medal this season, Forrest’s campaign ended after picking up an ankle injury in the Scottish Communities League Cup final defeat by Kilmarnock at Hampden on 18 March.

“It has been frustrating,” he said. “Obviously I was having a good season, the club were going well, on the way to winning the league, we were in the cup final and in the semis (of the William Hill Scottish Cup) and it ended quite bad for me so hopefully I can rectify it next season. There has not much I have been able to do.

“It was a tackle in the cup final which caused bone bruising and soft tissue (damage), so it has been frustrating.

“I got another scan last week and it is improving but it has been a slow recovery and I just want to get back fit.

“All I am doing is focusing on getting back for pre-season training.”