Pre-season is always a time when the rumour mill goes into overdrive. Add a new manager, and the need for a major rebuild, into the mix and the transfer stories know no bounds. Therefore, I should begin this article by stating that there has been no indication that Celtic are set to try and sign Andros Townsend, but his comments on TalkSport yesterday may open up that possibility. Indeed, some Celtic fans have suggested that it’d be mad for the club not to test the water now.
The comments I refer to were said in reply to TalkSport’s Scottish presenter Jim White, who asked Townsend if he would be interested in a move to either Celtic or Rangers if they came calling. The Englishman, whose Crystal Palace contract expires at the end of this month, said: “I’m open to everything. If there’s an option that presents itself and it’s the best one for me and fulfils my needs, I wouldn’t turn it down just because it’s in another country.”
Townsend, now 29-years-old, has spent his entire playing career in England. He cost the Eagles £16m when he signed for the London club in 2016, but his status as a free agent (as of a week’s time), could open up possibilities to move north of the border or abroad.
With the former England international open to plying his trade in Glasgow, which is not located a million miles away from his second permanent club Newcastle United, Celtic may be wise to contact Townsend’s agent and explore the prospects (or lack of) for a potential deal.