Celtic should get in touch with Wilfried Bony and ask the question

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With the speculation over Lawrence Shankland’s future still ongoing, one potential alternative for Celtic should be Wilfried Bony.

Tosh McKinlay was at Tannadice last night to watch Dundee United against Hibernian (Scottish Sun). However, with United clearly adamant that star-striker Shankland isn’t for sale (Evening Telegraph), it could be wise to look elsewhere for an alternative.

Bony is currently a free agent after his contract with Swansea City came to an end in May. Since then, he appears have been biding his time for his next project.

He left Swansea having scored 39 goals in 96 games (Transfermarkt). The vast majority of them came in the Premier League too. At the peak of his career, he was a £25million signing for Manchester City (BBC). 11 goals in 46 appearances for the Citizens ultimately wasn’t good enough as he ended up leaving without creating much of a legacy.

But what he does have is a history of putting the ball in the net at Premier League level. If he’s available and looking for a new club, it feels silly not to ask the question.

So what are the downsides?

Of course there are downsides that many would point out. He hasn’t played a lot of football in recent years. Bony only managed 14 appearances last season for Swansea and Al Arabi. The year before he was given 20 outings as he struggled to get consistent first-team action.

But he’s been keeping himself fit with League Two club Newport County (BBC). It’s clear he’s been taking good care of his conditioning, even if there’s a question mark over his match-sharpness.

He’s also 31 years of age. He’s at the other end of the spectrum to Shankland when it comes to his career. However, at that age he should still be able to perform regularly in the Scottish Premiership.

Bony has admitted that he would be open to a return to the English Championship (The Telegraph). Therefore, it’s not as if Celtic would be competing with clubs of a higher stature than ours. We could offer Bony a return to European football, whilst he could offer us a more physical alternative to our current attacking options.

It all depends what Neil Lennon is looking for. He hasn’t specifically stated what he’s after from his striking options. We do already have four forwards at the club, so that could be telling.

But if we’re looking for another and a Shankland deal continues to be tricky, it’s surely worth getting in touch with Ivorian Bony and seeing if he would be interested.