FOLLOWING manager Brendan Rodgers’ second return to Celtic Park, the Parkhead faithful enjoyed yet another very successful season in our 2024/25 campaign, and we even added some fantastic European nights to the fixture list as we pushed ourselves further than expected in the revamped Champions League tournament.
What matters at the moment, though, is our preparations for the coming campaign of 2025/26 as we will undoubtedly intend to consolidate our domestic dominance whilst ensuring that we do all we can to at least match our European progress, if not go one stage further at the next time of asking, and that of course means that we need to use the summer transfer window to improve the squad even further so that we can face the challenges that lie ahead. Our early transfer moves here will be reflected in early-season football betting markets and help boost everyone’s optimism for the campaign ahead.
As we all know, the speculation rumour mill is in full flow right now, but one of the more interesting claims that is currently doing the rounds concerns English Premier League talent Evan Ferguson. The highly rated 20 year old prospect had an incredible breakthrough season back in the 2022/23 campaign for Brighton and Hove Albion and across all competitions, including in international matches for the Republic of Ireland, he clocked up 34 appearances with a return of 13 goals.
The 2023/24 campaign was even better by many standards as the talented youngster notched up an additional 42 appearances, albeit with only seven goals. However, his season was cut short at the end of March through injury, and although featuring pretty regularly upon his injury return in 2024/25, he did not quite recapture his earlier form and Brighton loaned him out to West Ham United last January but it was not a good spell with only one start to his name.
Given age is more than on his side here, it is being reported that Brighton are again willing to loan him out for the coming campaign so that he can recapture the form that they believe he is capable of, and in effect, get himself back on track given his earlier promise and it seems that fellow Premier League sides Everton and Nottingham Forest are very interested in securing a deal, but so are we.
Out of the three sides as he looks to get back to his best, you would have to think that we are in pole position here given everything that we can offer him over those two sides, not least European action and Rodgers’ experience and how he has improved young players in the past.
Strengthening our position would undoubtedly be the fact that we sold Kyogo Furuhashi to Rennes last January, and despite our other dealings that month we did not replace him, and a striker has been rumoured to be one of our top targets this summer. Ferguson would fit the bill nicely given his talents, and given he needs far more regular game time to re-establish himself following his injury issues, this could be a match made in heaven and be to the benefit of both parties.
Not least if the speculation is true that current gaffer Fabian Hurzeler does not rate him, and it must be noted that he joined the club whilst Ferguson was out injured, so he has naturally moved to other options. So if he proves to be a perfect fit, there could well be a mutually beneficial permanent deal in the offing should we wish.
This could be a rumour to keep an eye on as the weeks progress.
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