England manager Roy Hodgson says sentimentality will not be a factor in deciding if Saints keeper Fraser Forster plays against Scotland tonight.

Forster spent four successful years with Celtic before moving to St Mary’s last summer, and will this evening return to his former club’s stadium for the highly-anticipated friendly.

With number-one choice Joe Hart having been allowed to return to Manchester City after Saturday’s Euro 2016 qualifying win against Slovenia, it will either be Forster or West Brom’s Ben Foster who starts in goal against Scotland.

The Saints custodian is the favourite to be given the nod, but Hodgson insists that, if he picks him, it will not be on the basis of the game being played at Celtic Park, but because his form warrants it.

“The major focus here is on Fraser Forster and, if I choose him, it won’t be for any sentimental reasons at Celtic Park, it will be because he deserves a start,” said Hodgson, who is also likely to play Saints right-back Nathaniel Clyne in Glasgow, following his impressive debut at the weekend.

Forster’s form at club level would certainly suggest that an inclusion in the line-up would be merited.

The 26-year-old has been part of the most formidable defence in England so far this season, with Saints conceding just five Premier League goals and keeping seven clean sheets in their opening 11 games.

Forster, who has been capped twice for England, has started just one game for his country – a 2-0 friendly defeat to Chile, at Wembley, a year ago – and is hoping to add to that tally tonight.

“Every kid’s dream is to go and play for England, or play for your country, and to achieve that is something really special,” he told the FA.

“You’ll have that memory for the rest of your life.

“I made my debut last year and it was probably the best day of my life, to be honest.

“It’s what you dream of as a kid and it’s what you go and work every day at your club for, to get better.

“Once you get the taste of one cap, you obviously want to go and get a second, third, fourth and keep moving forward.”

While Hodgson might not let sentimentality factor into his thinking, it is fair to say that Forster knows better than perhaps anyone in the England setup what sort of atmosphere to expect tonight.

“When you go up there, you see how big a club it is, it’s a fantastic stadium,” he said.

“They have fans who sing for 90 minutes non-stop, so the atmosphere is brilliant.

“It is one that can intimidate teams if they aren’t used to it.

“The fans can be like a 12th man. I know it’s a cliché, but it really does give the home team a lift.”

Forster added: “It will be good to see people again, and the first time I’ve been back.

“If I’m fortunate to play, it will be a great game to be involved in. With Joe going home, it gives a chance to Ben and me.

“Traditionally, this is one of the biggest games you can play in for England so it’s something to look forward to.

“And for me it has the added bonus of being at Celtic Park, so it would be a good one to go back for.”