Former England striker Darren Bent believes that a move to Celtic would be a good one for experienced forward Billy Sharp.
The 33-year-old, who currently plays with Sheffield United, has only started once in the Premier League for the Blades this season but has a tremendous track record in English football, with 239 goals in his senior career. The Sunday Post recently claimed that the Hoops have been considering a January move for the striker and Bent feels that he should try his luck at the Scottish champions.
Speaking about Sharp to Football Insider, he said: “He’s had a great career playing in the lower leagues, scoring a lot of goals. I think maybe the Premier League has been a step too far for him, he hasn’t looked nowhere near being the lethal striker in the Premier League, that we know he has been in League One.
“But yeah for him to go and play for a big club like Celtic, go and win trophies up there, get in the Champions League, I’m all for that. A lot of people think the Scottish league isn’t great, and competitive wise maybe it isn’t great but to go play in the Champions League with Celtic and win trophies, I’m all for it. I think it’s a move he should seriously consider.”
Bent makes a fair point about Sharp’s record in the English leagues, despite his struggles for Premier League recognition in recent months. The 33-year-old has scored once for the Blades this term, having played just 290 top flight minutes.
His goals played a significant part in Chris Wilder’s men being promoted last season as he scored 23 times in the Championship, the fourth consecutive season in which he had reached double figures in a league campaign. Indeed, Sharp has scored 10 goals or more in five Championship seasons and hit double figures in a league season 10 times during his career. Even allowing for some of those being in the English third and fourth tier, he has proven to be a consistently capable goalscorer.
It is interesting how Bent alluded to the possibility of Sharp winning trophies and playing Champions League football if he were to join Celtic. For all the goals that the 33-year-old has scored, he has never lifted silverware or played in European competition. With the Hoops qualifying for Europe every year and currently on course to win a ninth straight league title, there is a distinct possibility that the Sheffield United forward would soon tick both of those boxes off his ‘to-do list’ should he move to Parkhead this month.
Although Sharp is 33, he is still four years younger than Jermain Defoe, the veteran striker on loan at Rangers from Bournemouth who has scored 22 goals for the Ibrox club since joining a year ago, having hit just four in his previous season and a half with the Cherries. The Blades striker may look at Defoe’s renaissance in Scotland and believe that he would be capable of something similar. Therefore, Bent’s recommendation of a move to Celtic for Sharp seems to be a well-reasoned one.
Celtic fans, what do you make of Bent touting Sharp for a move to Parkhead? Share your views in the comments section below!
