Crystal Palace seemed to be onto a good thing when they brought in Nathan Ferguson from West Bromwich Albion on a free transfer two-and-a-half years ago, but his time at Selhurst Park has turned into a nightmare.

The young defender joined the Eagles in July 2020 after a contract standoff with the Championship club, signing a three-year deal with the south London outfit.

Ferguson had established himself as a regular with the Baggies in the 2019/20 campaign, making 21 appearances in the second tier, contributing one goal and one assist.

Therefore, it seemed like something of a no-brainer for Palace to sign him on a free transfer, despite the injury problems which were troubling him at the time of his arrival in SE25.

Unfortunately, injuries have continued to plague him throughout his time at Selhurst Park, and he has managed just one appearance for the first team, which came as a substitute last season in the Premier League.

He has already suffered two significant injuries during his time at the club, with hamstring and Achilles tendon issues ruling him out for a combined 87 games, and there is no telling if,  when he is finally back fit, he will ever be able to live up to the potential that he showed at West Brom.

Even when he does get back to full fitness, he is unlikely to usurp a centre-back partnership of Joachim Andersen and Marc Guehi in Patrick Vieira's side, while Joel Ward and Chris Richards are also probably ahead of him in the pecking order.

Now 22, it would be remarkable if the hitherto invisible Ferguson can ever become a regular at Selhurst Park, especially as his contract is set to expire at the end of the current campaign.

While it would be harsh for Palace to ditch a player who has been injured for almost the entirety of his career with the south London club, football is a ruthless business and the Eagles cannot continue to shell out a wage of almost £29k-p/w for a player who spends more time on the treatment table than the pitch.