IT HAS been great to see James Forrest getting back to something like his best form against Dundee United in the past few days.

He made a real impact when he came on in the League Cup final, and looked bright throughout Wednesday's Scottish Cup quarter-final replay.

You almost felt sorry for John Rankin having to try and stop him as he filled in at left-back.

But judging by what Ronny Deila said about how long it takes James to recover from playing 90 minutes, I'd expect to see Gary Mackay-Steven taking over from him today.

Ronny has been, and continues to be, very patient with James. That's not only because he knows how much of his career the 23-year-old has already missed through injury - but because he recognises what a fully-fit James can bring to his side in the future.

Likewise, Gordon Strachan has recalled James to his squad for the games against Northern Ireland and Gibraltar because he is fully aware that, in full flow, he is a player who can really hurt teams.

There was some surprise expressed Gary and Stuart Armstrong didn't make the squad, considering how quickly they have settled since moving to Celtic.

But Gordon is big on loyalty, and he already knows what these two players can bring to his squad as he has had them in it when they were still at Tannadice.

They just need to keep doing it for their club and the call will come again.

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