In a BOYLE Sports exclusive, former Ireland captain Andy Townsend backs Troy Parrott to thrive with regular top-flight minutes next season and sees Celtic as the perfect spot for Evan Ferguson to rack up goals and prove his potential.
Townsned also urges Heimir Hallgrimsson's side to ignore Czech critics ahead of the World Cup playoffs and get the game won by any means necessary and earmarks the Cheltenham Festival as the perfect warm-up to Ireland at a World Cup.
Leeds A “Great Environment” For Troy Parrott
I think Leeds United are going to be OK this season, and if they come in for Troy Parrott, then that would be a great environment for him to lead the line, play regularly for them in the Premier League , and that would be massive for him.
But if Troy can get a chance of games in the Premier League, he should go and take it if a top-flight club comes in for him, wherever they are in the Premier League . Maybe you don’t want to chuck yourself at a time that are favourites to go down next season, of course. I think, given what Troy has done, the goals he’s scored, and the importance of the goals he’s scored, he can produce something similar. He’s got a real knack for those moments.
You know, he's not six foot three or blisteringly quick, but he gets in the right places at the right time, and that is priceless, but I think he’ll probably always have to be at it, full on, to stay as an absolute regular in a Premier League team. I’d love to see him give it a go. He’s always been talked about as that young boy at Spurs who never really materialised in the first team for them, but I like the way that he's gone and put himself out there, not just sitting on his arse to be content with five minutes here and there.
Would Leeds Suit Troy Parrott?
Celtic A “Great Move” For Ferguson
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 a hatful, 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. Wrexham has been an unbelievable story. They couldn’t have dreamed of anything better for a Hollywood series, could they? But 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.
Would You Like To See Ferguson At Celtic?
Ireland Playoffs
Czech Media Criticism Of Ireland
Do Ireland need to change the way they play to respond to the Czech media? No, I don't think they need to show anything more than what they've already been doing. Now's not the time to demand the beautiful game. When you get yourself into a playoff position, it's about getting the job done. I fear more for the first game than I do the second one, if we get there. Denmark or North Macedonia , whoever it is, will be at home, and I think an Ireland team would be a force of nature with the fans behind them at the Aviva if that were to happen. I think they would have too much, even though Denmark have got some very good players.
I just think it might be Ireland’s time if they can get this Czech Republic game done and dusted, so let their coach spout off. What’s he even thinking? He’s not exactly managing Brazil or something. We shouldn't have to fear them. Go out there, be brave, be sensible, don't worry if you’re getting everyone back behind the ball and letting them have more of it. It's about getting over the line, however you do it. The foolish thing would be to go there, go crazy and let them get in front and then start looking like you've approached the game naively.
In these big international matches, it's all about the moments. It's not about dominating the ball for 90 minutes because you won't. It's not about sitting on the edge of your own box for 90 minutes because you won't. It's about when those moments present themselves and getting the right people in good areas to be brave and make good decisions in those moments. That's what will get them to a World Cup in the USA. It's about the big moments.
Now we've seen that from this Ireland team. We saw that in the Hungary game. Big, unbelievable moments aren’t about whether you can string 30 passes together and all that nonsense that I keep reading about, saying you can only do this or do that. Caoimhin Kelleher smashing one into the box, Nathan Collins getting his head on it, and Troy scoring the goal — trust me, that’s a big moment, and a moment to cherish.
Cheltenham World Cup Warm-Up
Cheltenham is almost like a second home now for Irish sports fans. They come over in droves. They absolutely love it, and they're embraced whenever they come over because the Irish are genuine sports lovers. It means a lot to them, and it's a big part of their lives. It is significant to them.
No doubt, Cheltenham this year will be a big plus for the Irish again. It usually is. If they can carry that feeling in some way, shape or form into later on in March, it would be absolutely amazing. I mean, think about a World Cup in America . There are so many Irish out there, living out there, that they are ready to become part of a green army if we qualify. That would be very, very special.
I’ve witnessed it for myself. I’ve felt it. I’ve seen it in the big tournaments, and there is nothing quite like it, and that’s why I hope that the guys can get over the line in these playoff matches, I really do. The first one is the one that is going to be tough for me. The second one's not gonna be easy, but I think with it being at home, they can get it done, and it’s going to be fever pitch stuff, it really is.
Harry’s Cheltenham Commitments
Harry’s got other interests, of course, and why wouldn’t he have? I’ll tell you what, Harry’s horse, The Jukebox Man , was a distraction for me a year ago. I backed it. It was romping home, and it got done on the line in the most unbelievable fashion at Cheltenham . This year, it’s already won big at the King George, and he’s fancied strongly.
Could Harry use a day down at the races to get the Spurs players back on track? I’ll tell you what, it wouldn’t surprise me if that was something that Harry would do. What’s important is you stand out on the training ground for hours and hours and hours and hours, and you can look wonderful out there, but if you keep going out there on a match day and you're not prepared to go that extra half a yard for each other, then you’re not a team. It’s all become a little bit every man for himself at Spurs . You’ve got to get rid of that.
Sometimes the way you get rid of that is a trip to Spain for three or four days for a few home truths or a day at the races, a day away from the training ground, and that's why these football clubs go on these team bonding exercises, for that sort of reason. It's just to get guys away from the club in a different environment, to enjoy each other's company a little bit more and to be prepared to go that extra half a yard for each other.
Tottenham aren’t doing that at the moment. It was every man for himself out there against Newcastle , what I saw, and there's hardly any of them, I think, that are doing anything to help the team. There’s nothing wrong with getting the players together, take them away for a couple of days and let them sort some of this stuff out for themselves. They need help of course but it’s not the end of the world taking them away and letting them figure things out themselves too.
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