Fraser Forster

On 4 October 2012, Roy Hodgson included Forster in his England squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Poland. On 8 November 2012, Forster was then named in Hodgson's England squad for their upcoming friendly against Sweden. On 14 March 2013, Hodgson again included Forster in his England squad, this time for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Montenegro. On 27 August 2013, Forster earned his fourth inclusion to the England squad ahead of the World Cup qualifiers with Moldova and Ukraine, joining Joe Hart and John Ruddy in competition for the goalkeeper's position. Forster won his first cap for England on 15 November 2013 in a friendly match against Chile at Wembley Stadium. England lost 2–0 but Forster was "blameless" for both goals, making a "fine diving save" to deny Chile a third. This appearance against Chile saw Forster become only the second person ever to play for England while a Celtic player, after Alan Thompson in 2004. On 12 May 2014, Hodgson named Forster in England's 23-man squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. In England's last warm-up match before the tournament, on 7 June, he replaced Joe Hart for the last 15 minutes of a 0–0 draw with Honduras. Forster travelled to Brazil with the rest of the England squad but did not feature in any of the three matches England played. A knee injury saw Forster miss most of 2015, but his form on returning to playing football in early 2016 earned him a recall to the England…

Despite his large build, Forster has a high level of agility; Ian Brown who coached him as a youth at Wallsend said that "he was and is an amazing shot stopper. I've seen him for Southampton save shots he shouldn't, his body bends." In one-on-one situations, he appears to make his already large stature even bigger to an onrushing opponent. Forster was, however, criticised in the early part of his time at Celtic for lacking confidence and command, and uncertain when he had the ball at his feet. In time he matured, with his confidence and kicking noticeably improved. His level of concentration was also noted; given Celtic's dominance over the majority of their opponents in Scotland, their goalkeeper often has long periods of inactivity, but when eventually called into action Forster was invariably alert and ready. In 2013, Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon praised Forster, stating that he had the potential to become one of the best goalkeepers in Europe.

Newcastle United

Forster earned his first professional contract with Newcastle United, signing for their Academy in 2005. Forster was Newcastle's third choice goalkeeper in the 2007–08 season while Tim Krul was on loan at Falkirk, and played regularly in the reserves. However, in the six years he was signed to the club, Fraser never made a first-team appearance for Newcastle, mainly due to the fact that he spent most of his time on loan to other clubs, often lasting entire seasons.

Loan to Stockport County

With Krul back for the 2008–09 season and Given back to full fitness, it was the turn of Forster to go on loan. He was loaned out to Stockport County on 2 October 2008, to deputise for regular goalkeeper Owain Fôn Williams while he was away on international duty with Wales. Forster started his first match for Stockport on 7 October in the Football League Trophy second round, where they lost 1–0 away to Bury. He started his first league match for Stockport on 11 October, where his team drew 1–1 away to Southend United. He returned to Newcastle on 1 November, after completing his loan stint at Stockport playing six league matches and keeping three clean sheets.

Loan to Bristol Rovers

Forster, having been on the bench for Newcastle on over 20 occasions in the Premier League, needed regular playing experience and subsequently signed a month-loan deal with Bristol Rovers on 31 July 2009. He kept two clean sheets in the four league matches he…

Forster was born in Hexham, Northumberland, the son of Brian Clive Forster QC (who later became a circuit judge), and attended the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle, but did not begin playing as a goalkeeper until he was 13 years old. Before then he had mainly played either rugby union or cricket. Coaches initially thought Forster might be too small to play as a goalkeeper, although he played for local junior team Stocksfield before joining the renowned Wallsend Boys Club. However, he entered a significant growth spurt at 15 years of age and later signed with Newcastle United.