EVAN FERGUSON’S DECISION to sign a new contract at Brighton in favour of potentially moving to a bigger club was discussed on today’s Football Family, a podcast for subscribers to The 42.
The young Ireland striker’s new deal runs until 2028.
“If you asked me to pick any club for Evan Ferguson to be at, he’s at the right one,” said Shane Keegan, the Cobh Ramblers manager. “It’s a dream situation for him.
“It’s not a club that can’t afford to go and sign the superstars, therefore they’re not going to sign a £50 million centre forward next year to replace him – brilliant – it’s what he needs.
“He’s going to be given the time there to continue to grow. If he has a bad game or two, yeah, he might drop out of the team but he’s not going to drop out of the squad and we’re not going to not see him, as has happened with many rising stars that we’ve had over the last few years.”
Keegan said he doesn’t like to hype Ferguson but added that the 18-year-old’s progress continues to impress hugely and in his view the 25 minutes he was on the pitch against Chelsea on 15 April was “arguably the best he’s been in the Premier League” so far.
🗣️ "It's a dream situation for him."
— The42.ie (@The42_ie) April 25, 2023
🗣️ "We done to all those who are advising him." @ShaneKeegan81 gives his reaction to Evan Ferguson's new deal with @OfficialBHAFC 🔵⚪️
Get the full Football Family podcast by subscribing to https://t.co/CAooKMr7GH 🎙️ pic.twitter.com/kgPZ0HKT29
David Sneyd, football journalist with The 42, said re-signing with Brighton is the right decision, yet a lot can happen to alter Ferguson’s trajectory.
“The first thing you think is, that makes perfect sense, with Brighton, the structures and all,” Sneyd said. “And then you kind of wonder as well – football, the tectonic plates can shift so quickly. Stuff can change . . . De Zerbi gets poached. Ferguson’s prominence has come because he fits perfectly into that system.
“Before that, I remember he was out in a school in Finglas. It was after his debut for Ireland and before the World Cup, and the talk was he was going to be going on loan to the Championship. That was the talk.
“Then De Zerbi’s got a hold of him and he’s seen something in him that a lot of people would have seen when he was younger, but Ferguson has taken that leap and he’s gone with it. But there still needs to be that little degree of caution.”
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