Celtic Park is no retirement home as Premier League royalty hit with brutal reality check
Joe Hart and Kasper Schmeichel have been tempted north of the border at the twilight of the careers
Celtic may have lured two Premier League legends north late in their careers.
But Shay Given is adamant Parkhead is no retirement home for goalkeeping royalty.
Veterans Joe Hart and Kasper Schmeichel both conquered English football but couldn't resist the pull of Paradise.
Man City favourite Hart rediscovered his love for the game during three trophy-laden years before hanging up the gloves last summer.
His successor might be 38, but Schmeichel isn't done yet. The Leicester City title-winner has signed up for a second season with the Double-winners and still looks hungry for more.
While Celts continue to unearth hidden gems from across the continent, in recent years, there has been a clear strategy of choosing an experienced head between the sticks.
However, Republic of Ireland icon Given has rejected the idea that Celtic Park is a graveyard for big names to wind down.
Promoting next month's glamour friendly between Celtic and Newcastle United, he said: "I wouldn't say it's a place for goalkeepers at the end of their careers.
"What I would say about their mindsets to come to Celtic, it's such a big club and the expectation levels are really high on the goalkeeper.
"Especially with the Old Firm, I think the mindset of the goalkeeper has to be really strong because you know going over there is going to be spicy with the fans, and even here if you make a mistake, the crowd will probably let you know.
"It's a position that's high-profile and it's a position where you need to have rhino skin and a strong mentality. I wouldn't say it's end-of-your-career stuff coming here, I wouldn't think that at all.
"Chris Sutton came up here after winning the league with Blackburn and did some good things, it's not just goalkeepers."
Schmeichel proved more than a safe pair of hands in his debut campaign. The Denmark captain's pinpoint distribution has added a new dimension to Brendan Rodgers' side, with the gaffer demanding the champions play out from the back.
But there's no escaping the sting of Hampden. An uncharacteristic blunder from Schmeichel gifted Aberdeen the Scottish Cup – and ripped the Treble from the Hoops' grasp in heartbreaking fashion.
Still, Given insists the battle-hardened Dane will be back stronger after a well-earned summer break.
Given said: "He'll be disappointed with the final and the goal because it's a mistake, there's no point trying to dress it up any other way.
"He knows himself he probably should have done better with it. It's a disappointing end to a brilliant season, because he's still won the double.
"I suppose the icing on the cake would have been to get their hands on the Treble but it wasn't to be. The journey his whole career has been on, he's had knock-backs as a kid and had to go right down to Notts County and play.
"He built his way back up and won the Premier League with Leicester. There's so much more positives than negatives. When you're a goalkeeper, you are either brilliant or rubbish - that's probably the mentality of some people.
"We've all been there before. You have to have a strong mentality and mindset to bounce back from that.
"Brendan knows him inside out and knows how to get the best out of him, get him back to peak fitness after a break in the summer, which he deserves. Sometimes it's a mental break as much as anything that the players need.
"I'm sure Kasper will go away and switch off mentally as much as anything and come back refreshed."
Behind every keeper, there's a goalkeeping coach. Celtic have one of the very best in Stevie Woods - even if the credit rarely comes his way.
Given, 49, knows just how crucial Woods' voice will be behind the scenes, especially during a difficult patch.
"He's been here a good few years and got the pedigree and experience", Given said. "He'll have seen it all, Woodsy.
"He'll do brilliant sessions but sometimes it's the wee talks as a goalkeeping coach. If you do make a mistake, how do you bounce back?
"Just going for a walk with a coach like Woodsy and having a chat about things is as good as diving about and making loads of saves.
"It's such a specialised position. I think someone of that calibre overseeing the whole goalkeeping department is great for the club as well.
"I'm sure him and Kasper will have a chat, even in the close season, so he bounces back for pre-season. These guys are in the background and they probably don't get the credit they deserve sometimes.
"The manager is front and foremost but there's a team behind him as well. They deserve great credit, the unsung heroes behind the scenes.
"Again, his job will be to speak to Kasper and get the best out of him, but also to say to Viljami Sinisalo, 'You've got an opportunity to play this season, you've got to push yourself to the max and compete with Kasper'.
"It's all about that voice and messaging."
Third-choice keeper Scott Bain packed his bags for Falkirk after seven years at Celtic Park.
From the outside looking in, being paid to sit on the bench while picking up trophy after trophy might seem like a dream gig.
But Given pointed out: "It's a nice job but it's not an easy job either. You're training every single day and not getting a great chance of playing. But things can happen really quickly, look at the Scottish set-up at the minute.
"Goalkeepers were dropping like flies and before you know it, the kid Cieran Slicker is making his debut at Hampden Park.
"At Newcastle, Loris Karius' first game was a cup final - sometimes it happens overnight. A third-choice keeper has to be training like he's playing on a Saturday, but has the disappointment of not playing.
"When you don't play, it's tough mentally, it can be draining. If it was me, I wouldn't really fancy it, to be honest."
A lifelong fan, Given came through the ranks at Celtic but never made a senior appearance before upping sticks for Blackburn Rovers in 1994.
Asked if he was ever close to coming back to his boyhood club, he added: "I don't think I was, no. I was a bit old-school back in the day, I used to have a solicitor look after me.
"I didn't really have an agent. There were different articles in newspapers but I was never really privy to it."
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