Irish international Alan Judge says his Brentford teammate Scott Hogan will someday play for the Republic of Ireland national team.
The right-winger believes his club's top scorer, having already netted eight times in the Championship this season, will declare for Ireland once he's fully fit and ready.
London-born Hogan, who qualifies through two of his grandparents, was previously called up to the Under-21 squad in February 2014 but never featured, and has recently been linked with the possibility of declaring for England.
Judge can't see that happening however, believing that the man he views as "the best striker in the Championship" will be togging out for Ireland soon enough, and that his previous injuries are the only thing that's prevented that from happening already.
"I honestly don't think he is holding out for an offer from England or anyone else, it is genuinely a case where he had two seasons out with injury and he has to look after himself.
"I think he will come and play for us, he's not stalling for a better offer, he has the right to take his time after two years of hell with injury. He's played every minute of every game for us this season so he sees the international breaks as a chance to recover. If he does come and play for Ireland, he will be worth waiting for. He's a good striker, quick and strong and he's a natural goalscorer".
The 24-year-old has seen his past two seasons disrupted through ankle an cruciate ligament injuries, playing just eight league games in that period, scoring seven times.
With his injury problems seemingly behind him, having played in 12 of Brentford's 14 league games this season, Roy Keane and Martin O'Neill view the striker as a potential goal-scoring outlet for the national side, a role they've struggled to fill in recent times.
Via The Herald
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