When Evan Ferguson was heavily linked with a summer switch to Celtic, it felt like exactly the kind of statement signing required to galvanise the club.
Instead, the highly-rated striker headed for Roma, leaving the Celtic Park faithful wondering what they might have missed out on.
The champions of Scotland got a glimpse of that pretty quickly because Ferguson was in Glasgow with Roma in the Europa League, ruthlessly netting a brilliant brace against then-manager Wilfried Nancy.
As Celtic floundered domestically – a struggle that continues to this day – it looked as though missing out on the Irishman was a monumental recruitment blunder.
This feeling was only exacerbated by the Hoops’ own high-profile striking addition, Kelechi Iheanacho, spectacularly falling flat on his face in Glasgow.
However, with the benefit of hindsight, the narrative has shifted dramatically.
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Evan Ferguson’s struggles at Roma following Celtic transfer links
Following that European high in the east end of Glasgow, Ferguson simply never got going in the Italian capital.
His form completely evaporated under the weight of expectation at the Stadio Olimpico, and to compound a miserable campaign, the youngster has now suffered a devastating, season-ending injury.
While Celtic’s current plight is certainly nothing to celebrate, the hierarchy has inadvertently dodged a massive bullet.
The Iheanacho experiment has already proven to be an unmitigated disaster, draining resources with next to zero return on the pitch.
| Player | Games | Starts | Goals | Assists | Total minutes |
| Iheanacho | 15 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 649 |
| Ferguson | 22 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 1,078 |
Had Celtic pushed the boat out to secure Ferguson, they would probably be sitting in the same disastrous position – saddled with a high-earning, out-of-form striker now confined to the treatment room.
But there does seem to be a common theme. The players Celtic signed simply haven’t been good enough, and many of those linked have also miserably struggled.
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