Wigan striker Joe Garner is definitely a wanted man. Not on these shores, mind, but further afield in India. To be precise, it is Robbie Fowler’s SC East Bengal who are after him.
However, as The Sun’s Alan Nixon hints at one Twitter, East Bengal are not the only outfit with their eyes on the prize:
Wigan. East Bengal now have a rival in race for Joe Garner. Mick McCarthy’s Apoel keen. Played for him before.
— Alan Nixon (@reluctantnicko) November 29, 2020
What APOEL Nicosia and East Bengal would be getting
Clitheroe-born Garner is now 32; an age no means ‘over-the-hill’ for a striker. Across his career in football, Garner has scored 138 goals in 481 career games.
These games have come predominantly for Preston North End (151 games/57 goals/15 assists) but he has also weighed in with time at Wigan (75 games/17 goals/5 assists) and Carlisle United (70 games/27 goals/5 assists)
Alongside stays at these clubs, Garner has also featured for Nottingham Forest, Watford and Ipswich Town as well as Huddersfield Town and Scunthorpe United. Aside from time in English football, Garner also tried his hand over the border with Rangers – scoring 7 goals and providing 3 assists in one season in the SPL.
Will APOEL or East Bengal be best for Joe Garner
Now that is a question that’s up in the air. Should he go to East Bengal, at least he will have familiar faces around him. Already on the books there are Anthonu Pilkington and Danny Fox who were teammates of his at Wigan.
Should Joe Garner wish to test himself against higher quality opposition then over to Cyprus to APOEL Nicosia it must be. He’d be joining another familiar face in head coach Mick McCarthy. APOEL are currently in 8th place in a 14-team league.
Garner was due to fly to India to arrive on Friday. However Apoel have come in today. See what one he chooses. https://t.co/4aO5NnsLW0
— Alan Nixon (@reluctantnicko) November 29, 2020
A later quoted retweet from Nixon seems to think that is it a toss-up that will come down to Garner’s personal choice.