CURTIS’ BLUES CAREER OVER?
Ronan Curtis’ Pompey career appears to be over with Scottish side Hibernian considering a move for the winger.
The News understands it’s looking increasingly likely the Republic of Ireland international will depart this summer, after four years at Fratton Park.
Pompey will accept an offer of £500,000 for the 26-year-old, who has a year to run on his existing agreement.
Curtis is also generating potential interest from the Championship, as the wait for the market to accelerate continues.
The likes of Blackburn, Preston, Derby and Cardiff have been linked with the winger in his time at PO4, with a valuation of £2m placed on his head 12 months ago.
Curtis could’ve left for a fee of around £1m as recently at January, but Danny Cowley was keen not to agree to his departure and leave his squad exposed in the event of not finding a suitable replacement.
Hibs are a new name to now emerge, with Lee Johnson
arriving at Easter Road in May on a four-year deal.
Johnson, of course, knows Curtis well from his time as boss at Sunderland.
A move to the SPL could offer the ideal platform for Curtis to showcase his talent as he bids to earn a place back in his country’s international set-up.
His preference, however, would be to move up to the second tier of English football after making 190 appearances at Pompey.
Curtis’ standing may have dropped after an inconsistent 2021-22 season, where he was used in a variety of different attacking positions to his preferred role off the left.
His overall figures make for impressive reading, however, returning 50 goals and 34 assists since arriving in 2018.
It now seems that all parties feel the time is right to move on, if the right agreement can be found among the player’s suitors.
Cowley faces a business summer of reshaping his squad and Curtis is undoubtedly one of the most bankable players in his squad along with Marcus Harness.
A decent fee would provide extra flexibility to carry out the required squad surgery.