There was plenty thrown at Viljami Sinisalo as he made his Old Firm debut for Celtic at Ibrox, but whether that was from the opposition on the pitch or a moronic element behind his goal, the young keeper took it all in his stride.
Sinisalo has enjoyed a run of six matches between the sticks for Celtic since number one Kasper Schmeichel picked up a shoulder injury on international duty towards the end of March, and he not only loved his taste of the big occasion on Sunday, but he also showed he was unfazed by it.
Danish veteran Schmeichel has enjoyed an impressive first season in Glasgow, and is desperate to be fit to take his place in the starting XI for the forthcoming Scottish Cup Final against Aberdeen, but Sinisalo is hoping he has shown his manager Brendan Rodgers that he can be relied upon should he get the gloves for the Hampden showpiece.
Whether he has done enough to keep a fit Schmeichel out of the side though was a poser he avoided as nimbly as a half bottle of Buckfast.
“That's a tough question,” Sinisalo said.
“Kasper's been brilliant for us for the whole season, he's been amazing. Up there, definitely, with one of the players of the season.
“Listen, Kasper's had an unbelievable career, he's done really well for us. If I stay in the team, if Kasper gets in the team, that's the manager's decision.
“I'm just trying to prove that I can play for this football club every day in training and when the chances come.
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“I've just got to focus on the next game, whenever that is, and try and do my best.”
Rodgers has already made his own feelings clear on Sinisalo, praising the 23-year-old after the game at Ibrox for showing that he has what it takes to represent the club in such testing circumstances, and potentially to be a future Celtic number one.
“That's nice to hear,” he said.
“It is pleasing to hear the manager say that. The manager's got a whole lot of experience in football, done great things in football, done great things here.
“To hear someone say that is great, obviously, but listen, I want to get better. Every game is an opportunity to get better, and I'm very much driven in that and trying to be the best I can.
“So, whether that's playing here or playing next weekend or the games that I've played, I want to just try and showcase my ability to the people that probably haven't seen me as much.
“I enjoyed it. It's a shame we couldn't get the result we wanted. We had that chance late on to go and nick it, but sometimes football goes that way, and you end up with a draw.
“I loved it. Every footballer wants to play in these games, so I enjoyed every minute of it.
“There are enough players and staff who have been here a long time. Over the week, I’d spoken to them about what to expect and stuff like that. It's not new to me. I've been watching these games previously.
“I really enjoyed the away fans being back in. I thought the atmosphere was good. I enjoyed it. The only thing is getting those three points, but that's football.”
While Sinisalo was called upon to make a few saves on Sunday, he has also had his eyes opened over the past few weeks to the wide-ranging skillset required to be a Celtic goalkeeper, with concentration levels during long periods of inaction needed on some occasions, and being expected to play an active role in the build up on others.
“Listen, as a Celtic keeper, you want to play well every single game,” he said.
“Different games require different things.
“Games like [Sunday], you've got to be calm and be able to make saves when they come. There are different games where you've got to be really clean with your passing, and there might not be as many saves. Every game is a bit different.
“I'm just trying to do my best to show that I can do the different sides of that. Hopefully, I can keep doing that for the foreseeable.”
