Scottish Cup Final – Forrest merits a start but so too does Kuhn

Originally posted on The Celtic Star | Last updated May 24, 2025 5:12 AM ET

Brendan Rodgers is the man in charge of team selection and he’s done more than a decent job in his two spells at the club so who are we to tell him who should and shouldn’t play?

As we all know his team takes on Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup final this afternoon and essentially Brendan has a team that more or less picks itself and we shouldn’t see anything in the way of any major surprises

The one man who deserves a start, but may have to wait an hour to get involved is James Forrest.

I’d actually be surprised if the man of the moment was omitted from the starting XI today and not just because of his record breaking goal last weekend. James has been in fantastic form these past few games and with the wealth of experience and his record at the national stadium he will surely be one of the first names on Brendan’s team selection.

James is a big game player as he’s proved on several occasions, and as he’s brimming with confidence whilst being on top form it makes sense that he takes his place in the starting XI as we aim to win yet another domestic treble.

The two big decisions Brendan has are whether to start with Nicolas Kuhn, a first pack player all season, or the legend that is James Forrest and then who to replace the injured Reo Hatate. It’s a choice between Paulo Bernardo and Luke McCowan and the Portuguese midfielder is likely to get the nod from the gaffer.

So the Celtic team today will be Schmeichel; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Taylor; McGregor, Engels, Bernardo; Kuhn or Forrest, Idah and Maeda.