Sam Johnstone Joins Celtic on Loan from Wolves
Sam Johnstone has swapped the Premier League grind for Glasgow’s goldfish bowl, joining Celtic on a season-long loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The 33-year-old former England international arrives to battle Finland’s Viljami Sinisalo for the No 1 shirt at the Scottish champions, stepping into a department reshaped by Kasper Schmeichel’s enforced retirement earlier this year.
A fresh start after Wolves frustration
Johnstone’s move comes after a stop–start campaign at Wolves. He made 17 appearances last season but lost his Premier League place in December for a side that ultimately went down, and his last outing came in an FA Cup defeat to Liverpool in early March. Since then, he has been stuck on the sidelines.
For a goalkeeper who collected the last of his four England caps as recently as 2023, that’s a long time to wait.
He began his career at Manchester United and built his reputation through spells at Aston Villa, West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace before heading to Molineux. Now he lands at a club where the expectation is simple and relentless: win.
"I'm buzzing to be here and I'm excited to get going," Johnstone told Celtic’s in-house media, his first words as a Celtic player underlining a desire to be back in the thick of it.
Hart’s call and the pull of Celtic
Johnstone didn’t exactly need a sales pitch, but one arrived anyway from a familiar voice.
"I didn't need convincing by anyone, but Joe Hart rang me the other day just to reiterate what a place this is, what a great group of lads and how the fans are unbelievable," he said.
Hart, who became a fans’ favourite during his own spell in Glasgow, clearly helped frame what awaits. Johnstone already knew the scale of Celtic from the outside. One day inside Lennoxtown and Celtic Park sharpened that picture.
"You hear about the size of the club, and you know about the size of the club, but just being here for a day, you notice how big the club is," he said. "And the pressure to win, which is what I like – pressure to win, pressure to perform and we all want to win trophies."
That pressure will be immediate. Celtic’s domestic dominance is constantly under scrutiny, and European nights demand a goalkeeper with a calm head and a strong presence.
Filling the Schmeichel void
Celtic’s goalkeeping landscape has shifted quickly. Kasper Schmeichel, signed in the summer of 2024, had nailed down the No 1 role before a shoulder injury in February ended his season and ultimately his career. His retirement left a gap not just in goal but in experience.
Manager Martin O’Neill believes Johnstone is built to handle that responsibility.
"He is a quality keeper with excellent experience at the highest level," O’Neill said. "I think he will be a very good addition to our goalkeeping team."
That “team” is a key word for Johnstone. He spoke openly about the tight-knit nature of goalkeeper units and the importance of internal competition.
"I think everyone knows the goalie groups are a tight-knit group. We work closely together every day and hopefully I can help Vil and he can help me, and we push each other and we support each other along with the other goalies and the goalie coaches."
Sinisalo has impressed in spells, but Johnstone’s arrival raises the bar. Training at Lennoxtown will be sharp. Mistakes will carry consequences. Standards will rise.
For Celtic, that’s the point. For Johnstone, after months without football, it’s exactly the kind of pressure he has been waiting for.
