Given: Build Ireland Around Parrott and Ferguson & We Have the Perfect Pairing

Speaking exclusively with BOYLE Sports , Irish football legend Shay Given has set out how the Republic of Ireland can build a team around Troy Parrott and Evan Ferguson .

Given has explained why Parrott needs to leave AZ Alkmaar for a more technical club, why a move to Italy could make him Ireland 's own Scott McTominay , and why the right manager could get the best out of Ferguson .

The former Ireland international has also backed John O'Shea to manage in the Premier League one day, and hailed the impact Keith Andrews is having on the reputation of Irish coaches.

Troy Parrott

What's the Next Step For Troy Parrott?

Troy Parrott has been brilliant for AZ Alkmaar , hasn't he? I think he is well suited to joining a top team back in England or in Europe because, as he's said himself, he's more suited to playing in a team that's a bit more technical. At Tottenham Hotspur , he was loaned out to different Championship clubs, and the directness of that level with the long balls and physical battles didn't suit him. That's why he bobbed about a bit, struggling to find a home.

He's found that now in the Dutch league because it is very technical and he's very good at dropping back into pockets of space, getting the ball wide and getting into the box. The way David Moyes is developing this Everton team, Everton wouldn't be the worst shout for him, actually. He just doesn't suit a team that is going to play direct football, and it feels like in the Premier League there are fewer and fewer teams who aren't moving in that direction, if I'm being honest with you.

Troy is a player someone needs to take a punt on because he's proved himself for club and country now with how important he has been, especially for the boys in green. He scored five goals in two games, and in that spree he had to get us close to the World Cup . It was just a phenomenal time for him, and I'm sure clubs will be looking at what he can bring because he has big things ahead of him in his future. Some big clubs might be trying to sign him because his style of play does lend itself to playing at a higher level, but I don't know what the fee will be. I do just hope he moves on, to be honest, and hopefully there are no AZ fans reading this. I think he's done his bit there; he's played well, and now it feels like it's time to go and take that next step again, and I hope that leads him back to the Premier League both for himself and for Irish fans as well.

Could Parrott Become Ireland's Own Scott McTominay?

Could we see Troy Parrott move out to Italy to follow in the footsteps of Scott McTominay ? That would not surprise me at all. Italian teams are looking at the Premier League now for players from these shores more so than ever, and when you look at what someone like Scott has gone and done, they must be thinking, wow, we got this guy for an absolute snip.

What Scott McTominay has brought to Serie A as a league, and to Napoli as a club, winning the league and everything else, it makes me hope that Troy Parrott does get his own move out there so we can build the Ireland team around our own McTominay . We'd love to have someone who's playing for Roma or Juventus or one of the Milan clubs, or even an Everton or whoever else might end up trying to sign him. We've not got a load of players who are playing at the very top levels of the game, so the more who can get those opportunities, the better, and I think Troy 's definitely one of them.

Evan Ferguson

Would a Celtic Move Be the Wrong Environment For Ferguson?

Would a move to Celtic be a make-or-break moment for Evan Ferguson ? No, because Evan doesn't strike me as the sort of character where you can break him like that. The only thing that can break him at the minute is his injury record. We go back two or three years ago, and Irish fans were thinking we'd found the next Robbie Keane or Damien Duff or whoever else in Evan Ferguson when he burst onto the scene at Brighton . I think he scored a hat-trick against Newcastle United , typically.

If Evan Ferguson can stay fit, he's the sort of player we can build a team around. Ireland could have Troy Parrott and Ferguson up top, and you fit everyone else around these two brilliant players. It just feels like Evan has lost his way a wee bit. Even when he went to West Ham and his old manager at Brighton was there, Graham Potter , you thought that would be the perfect fit, but he hardly played a game, and then you start questioning things from the outside. Is he looking after himself? Is he doing everything by the book? I just feel sorry for Evan because I had a few injuries in my own career, and once you get one injury it leads to another, and then you start compensating, trying to protect your dodgy knee, but your left calf goes. It's that kind of thing.

This summer can hopefully give Evan the opportunity to reset and go back to building up his physique because he is a big guy for his age, and I think a lot of the time when you're young as well, you do get more injuries before your body toughens up to Premier League football. If Evan can find a home, it'd be amazing to see him and Troy up front together if they're both playing regularly for their clubs. On paper, it's the perfect pairing. Evan is more of a target man, an out-and-out number nine, and Troy likes to drop off into the pockets. You can see how it could all work out great, but we just need Evan to pull his socks up and get back at it again.

If you have a manager like Martin O'Neill at Celtic who can trust him, put him in, and put his arm around his shoulder, I think we'll see the best of him, and Martin is brilliant at that with his man management. The Celtic fans would be very excited to see Evan arrive in Glasgow too to become a regular, but they've just signed Kasper Hogh , so perhaps that door has been closed again. I just think he needs to go somewhere where the manager is a bit old school about these things. Someone who will tell Evan , you're my number nine, you're going to play every week, you're my main man. I don't think it's about sports science or tactics; he needs to go to a club where he can settle, feel that confidence again, and, touch wood, put the injuries behind him and go on a good run.

At 21, Does Ferguson Still Have Time to Get Back on Track?

It's easy to forget Evan Ferguson is only 21. I bring myself back to when I was 21, and I'd just joined Newcastle United , and it was the first time that I was given the number one jersey. Kenny Dalglish told me It's on you now, and off I went. Previous to that, I'd been sent out on loan and played a few games with Blackburn Rovers , but 21 was the age where I started playing regularly, and that's why it's important not to lose faith in Evan Ferguson because there's absolutely no doubt he's got a brilliant career ahead of him. It's just about getting the right club, the right manager and the right fit, and I'm sure his agent, whoever's looking after him, will be looking at that this summer.

Could Ferguson Follow in Your Footsteps to Newcastle?

Can Evan Ferguson offer Newcastle United what they need? You never know. The club has changed the way they're buying players now, and they want to bring in more youngsters, and Evan Ferguson fits the bill on that front. Newcastle do have two or three top strikers in Nick Woltemade , Osula and Yoane Wissa , who has had his own injury concerns and what have you. But I wouldn't rule it out.

Irish Management

How High Can John O'Shea Go as a Manager?

John O'Shea has gone on a journey. He's been assistant to a few different managers. He started off his coaching badges at Reading and done bits back at Manchester United in the academy, and now he's the number two for the Republic of Ireland . I think he's been quite clever in that sense because some other guys want to go in as the number one at the very start, and I think John 's been around the game long enough to decide he's going to learn his trade by learning off all these different managers he's worked with.

He was involved with Stephen Kenny in his Ireland setup as well, so he's worked with different managers who all had different styles and approaches, and he strikes me as someone who has really gone up the ladder in a sense that he wants to learn the game properly. He doesn't want to go in too soon. He doesn't want to rush it. I do feel for young managers. If you get the wrong job, like Kolo Toure at Wigan Athletic , you get 10 games and then you're out the door, and we might never see Kolo work as a manager when, in fact, he's a really good coach. You have to be careful with where you go in as a manager, and I think John is waiting for the right job and the right opportunity, and the right backing as well because you need support and the right people around you who you can trust because it can be very cutthroat.

Glenn Whelan is another one. He's gone in now at Livingston , and you have to get in at a certain level. He climbed the ladder, working as an assistant and as first team coach, and you hope he does well. Damien Duff did well at Shelbourne . Robbie Keane 's done well in Europe and won a couple of titles in different countries. I just feel for the Irish guys because it seems like they have to go round the houses a bit. What Keith Andrews has done at Brentford might give all Irish managers and coaches a boost.

He's showing that maybe Irish managers and coaches do know what they're talking about over how to set up a team and manage a squad. Damien Duff is in at Brentford as his number two now as well. John O'Shea will look at Keith 's success too, and I do think fair play to him; he's had a brilliant first season as a manager. He couldn't have done any better, and it's great for other coaches with those aspirations to get to the top. I'm sure John O'Shea is someone who will one day be managing in the Premier League . I've got no doubt about it. He just needs to get the opportunity, be that with Ireland or at a Premier League club.

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