Forrest hints at switching sports, Brown booed off and defiant Palma speaks out – Celtic news bulletin

James Forrest reckons he could have given Andy Murray a run for his money at tennis if he'd stuck to the racquet over football - a claim Alistair Johnston admits winds him up.

Celtic defender Johnston is a big tennis fan and idolises Roger Federer. He grew up playing the sport as a kid before it became apparent he was a footballer in the making. He still plays with his wife in his downtime though and keeps a keen eye on the professional game. So when teammate Forrest tells him he could easily have been a top tennis star himself, he admits it's hard not to take the bait.

He told the My Sporting Hero podcast: “James Forrest always tells me that he thinks he could’ve broken into the big four, that he could’ve replaced Andy Murray if he’d stuck to tennis. I said, ‘I’m not sure there are too many tennis players at the heights of 5 foot 8.’ I take that with a pinch of salt, and he always brings it up. It winds me up a little bit, it’s hard for me not to nibble on that one.”

Elsewhere, Luis Palma is striving to hit the Celtic heights of last season in a bid to force his way back into Brendan Rodgers' starting XI. The Honduran winger has found himself on the fringes of the side this season with Rodgers challenging him to show he's worthy of a starting slot. Nicolas Kuhn's recent form has made that an even tougher task.

The German has netted four goals in his last three games and reportedly has the likes of Fulham and Brentford taking a keen interest in him.

Palma is currently back in his homeland on international duty, And while he's made some cryptic social media comments so far this term about his lack of game time, he's determined to recapture his own form and give Rodgers a decision to make on his return to domestic