Former Republic of Ireland international Andy Townsend has urged Evan Ferguson to leave Brighton for Celtic at the end of the season.
The striker has seen his development stagnate markedly over the past few campaigns, with injuries and a torrid loan spell with West Ham preventing him from getting his career back on track last season.
Ferguson went on to join AS Roma on a season-long loan deal over the summer, but his spell in Italy has not panned out as either party would have hoped. The 21-year-old has scored three goals in 16 Serie A appearances, prompting plenty of criticism from manager Gian Piero Gasperini.
With that in mind, it appears unlikely that the Giallorossi will activate the £34million option to buy clause they inserted into the deal, which will therefore see Ferguson return to the Amex Stadium with plenty to prove.
Townsend feels that a move to Scottish giants Celtic could be what the striker now needs at this stage in his career to truly meet his potential.
The former Chelsea and Aston Villa star told BOYLE Sports: “Celtic would be a great move for Evan Ferguson. He needs to go somewhere where he can play every week and bag 30 goals if he can, and become talked about as a striker with those sorts of numbers.
“We still talk about Evan in terms of his potential and, hopefully being fit, there’s a very talented boy in there, and I think Celtic would be the perfect environment. Whether or not Martin O’Neill and the club agree with that, who knows.
“If he did go up to Celtic and didn’t score hatfuls, then maybe that shows us he’s not quite the player that everyone thought he was. Personally, I hope he can go there. I think that would be a great move for him.”
Townsend went on to note that he feels that Ferguson now needs to be the ‘main man’ at his next club – a role which he is unlikely to slot into with Brighton upon his return.
The ex-midfielder concluded: “I think Evan has been at Brighton, he’s been to Italy, and I think he needs to come and be the main man at a big club. Celtic absolutely tick that box. They’d love him up there.
“But he knows that if he goes there, he’s walking in the footsteps of Henrik Larson and legends like that. He’d have to go into Celtic and convince them that he’s as good as those guys. That’s what he needs to do, live with the pressure of a big club and those expectations. Hopefully, he can deliver.”