News about Lewis Ferguson

"The challenge for teams coming to a club like Celtic is they sometimes can place their value on the league and not the player." So said Brendan Rodgers during Atalanta's long-running summer pursuit of Matt O'Riley, when every week seemed to bring with it a new bid from the Europa League holders, all of them well south of Celtic's valuation.

Lewis Ferguson is counting. At least this time he's not torturing himself by trying to work out how many months are left before he's back playing again. On this occasion he's trying to total up the number of his Bologna team-mates who have played at Euro 2024. And he's got to nine. It would have been double figures had the Scotland midfielder not suffered the first serious injury of his career.

What are we to make of this Scotland team? The nearly men? All talk and no trousers? Certainly, for the second time in three years, this group of players have merely made up the numbers at a major tournament despite promising so much more. All the chat about trying to create history and reach the knockout stages for the first time felt cheap and hollow come full-time against Hungary on Sunday night, almost like a pipe dream. It was all so different barely a fortnight ago. Even a couple of laboured performances against Gibraltar and Finland in the warm-up games couldn't dilute the excitement and optimism surging through the country.

There were many moments during last Friday's opening game in Munich when it felt like the 23 years Scotland spent in international exile were, in fact, a blessing in disguise. Even before Ryan Porteous was sent off on the cusp of half-time, the match was an embarrassing, one-sided rout. Steve Clarke had lost players of the ilk of Aaron Hickey and Lewis Ferguson in the weeks before Euro 2024 started, yet it appeared that the heart and soul of the team had already been ripped out.

KENNY McLEAN insists Scotland plan to secure a place in the last 16 of Euro 2024 for devastated team-mate Kieran Tierney. The Arsenal defender became the latest addition to Steve Clarke's lengthy list of casualties when he was stretchered off during last night's 1-1 draw with Switzerland with what appeared to be a serious hamstring injury. Lewis Ferguson, Aaron Hickey, Nathan Patterson, Lyndon Dykes, Ben Doak and Jacob Brown were ruled out of Steve Clarke's squad before the flight to Germany.

SCOTLAND assistant manager John Carver says they are now being 'extra cautious' after injury scares for Andrew Robertson and Lawrence Shankland ahead of Friday's Euro 2024 opener against Germany. Manager Steve Clarke has already lost Lyndon Dykes, Ben Doak, Lewis Ferguson, Aaron Hickey, Nathan Patterson and Jacob Brown from his squad for the finals. And Carver said the removal of Robertson and Shankland from yesterday's first day of training in Garmisch-Partenkirchen was a precautionary measure after so many injuries.

SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell has emerged as the latest Scotland injury doubt for Euro 2024. Manager Steve Clarke has already lost key players Lyndon Dykes, Lewis Ferguson, Nathan Patterson, Aaron Hickey, Jacob Brown and Ben Doak for the opening game of the finals against hosts Germany next Friday. And Mail Sport can reveal that Maxwell is now scrambling to find a way to make it to the Allianz Arena in Munich after undergoing emergency surgery on a detached retina.

Scottish soft drink brand Irn Bru has released a hilarious advert ahead of the Euros, which sees a kilt-wearing fan back the Tartan Army to go far in this summer's tournament while making very colourful jokes about his 'Mannschaft'. The innuendo-laden ad revolves around the German word for football team and potential confusion over its meaning. The patriotic video posted to X starts with a Scottish fan, dressed in a dark blue replica kit and checked kilt, washing his hands in a pub bathroom. He is soon joined by a German supporter sporting a white top, a Germany-themed hat and a German flag draped over his shoulders. The host nation fan turns to the Scot and says: 'Hey Scotland. Good luck with your Mannschaft. Ja!'

THE last time John Bennett said anything significant outside of the stage-managed snoozefest of the Rangers AGM, it was part of a ludicrous move to try to play down the significance of monies being brought in from the Champions League. September 2022 that was. On the in-house TV channel. He was still the vice-chairman. The manager, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, had got the club into the group stage of Europe's premier competition by beating PSV Eindhoven in a play-off and, despite seeking to strengthen the squad, received nothing for any new players in the six days between securing progress in the Netherlands and the transfer window shutting. When it all went pear-shaped that season, managing director and all-round grey man Stewart Robertson started droning on about how people had been talking about money having 'fallen out of the sky' and how this Champions League dough the club had been chasing for years was, as it turns out, nothing to get in a flap over.

BOLOGNA have joined Southampton in the pursuit of £6million Aberdeen striker Bojan Miovski. The 24-year-old North Macedonian striker is expected to leave Pittodrie this summer after scoring 26 goals in all competitions. Linked with Feyenoord and Celtic, Mail Sport understands Bologna and Southampton are the clubs showing most interest.

The night after the first major operation of his career, a stricken Lewis Ferguson lay propped up by pillows and pain killers in Bologna's Toniolo Clinic. Football on the television only fuelled mental demons tap-dancing around his mind. AC Milan faced Roma in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final. And, as Gianluca Mancini rose to nod the only goal of the game, the Scotland international glanced at his swollen knee and tortured himself with what ifs? The highest-scoring Scot in Serie A history, the 24-year-old had claimed six goals in Bologna's remarkable pursuit of Champions League football. Now facing months on the sidelines, he wondered when he would ever sample the joy of scoring against Europe's elite - and, if he did, would his shattered knee hold out?

Scotland's Lewis Ferguson is set to miss out on Euro 2024 after Bologna confirmed that the attacking midfielder has ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament. The Bologna captain was substituted during Saturday's 0-0 draw with Monza and will now need an operation on his knee. 'Devastated with today's news but that's life,' Ferguson wrote on Instagram.

Northern Ireland beat Scotland by a narrow 1-0 victory over their neighbors Scotland thanks to Conor Bradley's spectacular first goal for his country. Liverpool's rising star opened his account for Northern Ireland by capitalizing on Nathan Patterson's mistake before darting into the box and thumping a looping attempt into the top right-hand corner. Scotland suffered more misery in the first half after Lewis Ferguson replaced him.

ALASDAIR MACKENZIE IN ITALY: It says a lot about how far Lewis Ferguson has come in Italy over the past 18 months that it has been a surprise. Rumors of a €20 million (£17.4 million) pact in Turin coincided with news that the former Aberdeen actor had spotted the eye of Maurizio Sarri in Rome. In truth, virtually every club in Serie A would like to have the 24-year-old Bologna and Scotland midfielder back in their ranks right now.

JOHN McGARRY: Juventus have stepped up their interest in Lewis Ferguson, with Aberdeen poised for a £2 million windfall if the Scotland international moves on from Bologna in January. The Turin giants, who have long-served supporters of the midfielder, are now said to be able to offer a £17.5 million bid to take the player in the upcoming transfer window. Since moving from Granite City in 2022, the 24-year-old former Dons and Hamilton star has been a revolving success in Serie A. Ferguson was recently linked to a move to Rangers, the club where his father Derek and uncle Barry played.

Bologna and Juventus ended in a 1-1 draw in Serie A as Dusan Vlahovic cancelled out Lewis Ferguson's opener. Juventus were keen to make it two wins out of two when they met Bologna after beating Udinese 3-0 in their Serie A opener.

Since emerging as a target for Serie A side Hellas Verona, Celtic defender Stephen Welsh could be one of the first players to leave the club this summer. Josh Doig, Scotland's Under-21s teammate, has impressed since leaving Hibs for Verona last summer in a £3 million contract, and Bologna's Lewis Ferguson has been aiming for a playerplus-cash transfer. Bologna is also keeping an eye on Welsh's situation, with the 23-year-old aiming for first-team football. Liel Abada, a winger, has considered an exit after turning down a new deal, while Rodgers wants to discuss the futures of a number of players ahead of games against Yokohama F Marinos, Gamba Osaka, and Wolves. Rodgers said, insisting that he would have the final say on new signings: "You have no idea of such markets or knowledge that you might be able to find a player that has just become available.'

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, eight games were played across Serie A, as the Italian top-flight's dramatic end draws closer. Inter Milan's eight-game winning streak was snapped by champions Napoli, although city rivals AC Milan struck five against a sorry Sampdoria. Monza won on Friday night, marking their impressive debut in Serie A, although Atalanta's future appears a bit more uncertain despite their 3-1 victory over Verona.

On Matchday 30 of Italy's biggest clubs, ALVISE CAGNAZZO: On Weekend 30 of the Serie A season, it was a frustrating weekend for some of Italy's top teams. Napoli, AC Milan, and Inter Milan were among those keeping an eye on the second leg of their Champions League quarter-finals this week, which may have resulted in points deferred. Rivals Roma and Lazio, on the other hand, lifted their hopes of Champions League qualification by 3-0 victories over Udinese and Spezia respectively. Alvise Cagnazzo of Mail Sport has dissected the weekend's events and taken a closer look at ten things we learned from the Italian top flight.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Napoli advanced to Serie A glory with a 2-0 win over Empoli, taking a 2-0 lead at the league's summit. Milan capitalised on their rivals' misfortune at Bologna to draw level on points with Inter, cruising past Atalanta with a 2-0 win. But what else happened this week in Serie A? Sportsmail takes a look at ten things we learned during the Italian top flight's fifteen rounds.