Theo Walcott. He was absolutely blistering as a kid. Ryan Giggs too.
Evan Ferguson - Top Irish Prospect
- Thread starter Pogue Mahone
- Start date
I'm sure he's doing that already but he's still growing in to his body.
Most 18 year olds only play against their own age group.
Nice lay off at 00:43.
He was feeding off scraps though. We'll know more about him in the Greece and Gibraltar games.
We'll have 6 more qualifying games before he even turns 19 and I guess a few friendlies also.
So, assuming he's fit, he'll have at least 10 caps before turning 19 and hopefully a few goals.
We won't really see his true potential til he's 20/21 by which time he'll have played 100 senior games.
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He’ll be getting that at Brighton to be fair. Not as if Mary Berry is the nutritionist.
And been a chelsea fan you would be the king of knowing what is "overhyped" given the amount of that crap that passes through your club on a yearly basis, right, abraham, McEachran, Mancienne, to name but a few from your many, and the best was the creaming from your lot how you had the next "Gazza" in Gilmour, oh and see as you like to bring up past remember when you lot claimed Pidgeley was the second coming of Cech.
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I am indeed an expert in spotting stupid posts and stupid posters.
TBF whilst he's not the 'new Gazza', there's an argument to be made that six months of ETH training and Gilmour would improve the United midfield. Miles more press resistant and able to show for the ball to progress play as well as relieving pressure compared to the likes of McTominay, and more precise in his play compared to Fred. He ran things against a not-bad England midfield in 2021 and looked good for Chelsea before bad loans and mismanagement arrested his progress.
Giggs suffered from injuries and is quoted to never go flat out after he turned twenty - he was still blistering though.
Walcott I kind of agree with.
Should’ve been a third for Belgium
Top talent - very exciting. But unrealistic target, I reckon. Brighton will want a fortune for him already.
Gilmour is just the latest in a long line of small, British midfielders who can keep the ball (but with zero range) who get horrendously overhyped. There's a reason why Chelsea let him go for 8m, which is nothing nowadays, and why he sits on Brighton's bench barely getting game time. He's ok at keeping the ball, but with no threat, and a massive liability defensively. There's very few circumstances he's a useful player for a premier league side. He's a younger Harry Winks, and that's probably overstating him.
His performance against England must also be up there with the most overhyped of all time. He kept the ball well, and held his own but the notion he "ran" the game was completely bizarre. England had 61% possession that night, and neither team showed virtually any threat so the reputation he grew from it is baffling.
No doubt, but fortunes come in different sizes. 100m would be far too much for Evan, but 60m would be hard for Brighton to say no to and would by no means break our bank.
I agree with the Winks comparison, but I don't think that's to either of their detriment. Winks was also (and could be again) a relatively rare type of British player in a similar mould, and had some fine performances against the likes of Spain (when they were 2-3 levels better than at present) as well as in Europe. He's declined significantly since then, but under some uninspiring or tactically regressive managers - much like Rashford's form went off a cliff for a while - so also maybe recuperable. I'd play prime winks over henderson or phillips.
I also think you're right about this kind of player not being exceptional in a wider European context - the issue is that specifically English/Scottish no. 8s who can actually control the tempo and, crucially, are able to play forward passes through a press (as opposed to the genuinely timid or technically mediocre British no 6s and 8s that also get churned out) are much rarer. Wilshere was the last genuine version of the former before injuries and 'lifestyle' got in the way. Obviously players need to have a certain level of fitness/mobility, but they don't have to be lunks to contribute defensively in a properly set out team/system. You shouldn't need to run around either kicking people or trying solo runs and playing Hollywood balls to be an English midfielder - I agree that you need one of your 3 to be able to spread play at longer distances as well as launching quick counters when needs be, but not every midfielder has to be an imitation Gerrard.
Carrick, for instance. had the long -ball distribution but he was also able to defend just through positional intelligence along with recycling the play , slowing things down then starting moves off again with a sharp 15-20 yard forward pass as much as a 50 yard diagonal. If fast CMs/10s keep bypassing that kind of winks player, it also might be an issue with how the midfield is set up in relation to the CBs (and who the CBs are - Maguire/Dier being obvious culprits)
In terms of the other stuff - Chelsea have been very good at stockpiling young players for profit (and tbf, winning things fairly regularly), but they've also made lots of errors in valuing and (under)selling players, De Bruyne, Salah, Lukaku even. Mainly though, Gilmour didn't fit into Tuchel's plans, was way down in the list of players due to a combination of style and not kicking on with the Norwich loan, and seemed to have lost some confidence as a result. Not a Chelsea or BHA fan and not sure about the details but I think there's also some kind of sell-on clause.
With the England game, again, I'd agree that Gilmour didn't create a ton of chances, but the Scotland midfield neutralized England's CM zones better than anyone aside from Italy in the final (even Germany and Denmark), and it was Gilmour doing most of that with blocking channels, offering himself for passes and passing it forward as well as killing momentum when needed.
I'm not sure he's worth the risk and I'm Irish so obviously very excited by him. At 30 or 40m he'd be worth the gamble.
I would say Greenwood, Martial and Rashford had more potential at his age.
I've no idea what will happen with Greenwood but I've a feeling he'll be quietly ushered out of the club.
Hasn't Brightons major fault over the past few years been that for all their nice build up play they haven't had a decent forward at the end of it. Can imagine they will want a lot more now they potentially have that.
Hasn't Brightons major fault over the past few years been that for all their nice build up play they haven't had a decent forward at the end of it. Can imagine they will want a lot more now they potentially have that.
Brighton have no motive to sell so will only accept silly money. They've loads of money in the bank and will have European football next year so will probably be strengthening their squad.
Evan Ferguson has no motive to leave either. He's in the perfect place for his development.
Hasn't Brightons major fault over the past few years been that for all their nice build up play they haven't had a decent forward at the end of it. Can imagine they will want a lot more now they potentially have that.
Fair point. Maybe they hold out for 75m.
60m Brighton wont even answer the phone for that.
Brighton have no need to sell, player happy to develope at Brighton. He will be at Brighton next season. The only way Brighton sell is a stupid offer comes in for him.
£120m maybe.
£120m maybe.
100%. Everyone has their price but it'll take silly money. Evan Ferguson won't push for a move either.
At the same time I bet Brighton would accept 80m. Their CEO is a business after all.
His dad was a professional footballer also so he'll have good advice and not be swayed by a greedy agent.
He knows the most important thing at his age is playing games and getting quality coaching.
It's impossible to know how good he is yet anyway. I guess this time next year we'll have a better idea but Brighton could get asset stripped of their manager and players in the summer so next season could be difficult with European football on top.
120? Really? I thought we only need to pay for English player tax and Man Utd tax seem like the Irish player tax has gone through the roof.
If we really shown interest I think he will be unsettled and the fees could be much lower. Maybe max 60 and I think the realistic fees should be around 30 to 40.
Evan is 18 years old. An offer of 60m will at least be countered with a number around 80m. No way would Brighton hold out for 200m for an 18 year old striker.
But of course none of us have any idea what Evan envisions for himself. If he's happy to sign a long term contract with Brighton that may well be that, although it's very likely that Evan's agent will insist on a release clause. Of what amount it's hard to say, but whatever the case may be about that if United come knocking on the door and if Evan would like to move up the career ladder to a club which has a realistic hope of PL and CL glory it's not likely that the boy will reply feck that, he's staying at Brighton.
Cross-post from the centre forward thread.
“Hiya - just a slight correction. Brighton as a club don’t do release clauses under Tony Bloom’s ownership. Paul Barber has spoken about this in fan forums over the years and made the club policy very clear. Barber has stated that Tony believes having a release clause of any kind - even a very high one - is never beneficial to the club. The thinking is that if a player wants to move, and the fee is right, the club won’t stand in their way in a summer transfer window. So having a release clause is actually a hindrance to negotiating a sale, given all our most valuable players are already signed to long term contracts.
Potter didn’t have a “release clause”, De Zerbi doesn’t have one (despite what Fabrizio Romano claims on Twitter - a guy who is something like 0-6 in Brighton transfer predictions) and none of our players have one. What they have is a very strong negotiating position and some superb businessmen running the club.
For the sake of completeness, there has been one “release clause” activated during Tony Bloom’s 14 years as Chairman. Aaron Mooy was allowed to move to a Chinese Super League team, due to his family situation, which was non-negotiable to allow us to sign him.
Evan Ferguson renewed his contract until June 2026 in October 2022, so while another new contract in the summer is possible, it’s not that likely as the club won’t keep giving new contracts to players with three years already remaining, solely on the basis of half a good season and internet rumours of transfer interest.
I personally think a move for Ferguson is very unlikely yet, but if it should happen this summer the fee would be enormous, as I opined in the other thread about the lad.”
I don’t mean to seem rude or pass agg but it’s important to try and nip things which aren’t true in the bud early, before they become accepted fact. This only leads to confusion later. Thanks!
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Thanks for your thoughts.
“English” players tax is a bit of a myth in practice. What clubs actually pay is a “Home Grown Players” tax. The rules are outlined here; https://www.skysports.com/amp/footb...r-league-clubs-need-to-sign-homegrown-players
Acquisition of young foreign players is a common way around this, as they become home grown, such as Sanchez for us.
Respectfully, Ferguson will not be joining any club for £30-£40m this summer, with three years remaining on his contract and presently being one of the hottest prospects in the Premier League, whether you think that should be the fee or not.
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Smart thing to do is buy him and loan him back to Brighton for another year.
Brighton have no need to sell. Evan happy to learn at Brighton, still has a long contract. As been seen regarding Brighton and transfers, they will sell if the fee meets what they want, but Bloom will not say a price, as seen with Caicedo they will sell when the time is right or the offer is too good to turn down.Bloom does not do release clauses either.
Not for sale.
Smarter thing to do is, dont bother contacting BHAFC with offers for a player thats not for sell. Arsenal and Chelsea tried this in the last window with Caicedo, even unsettled him, but hes still at BHAFC.
Try Spuds for Kane instead, i think you will have more luck.
All great points. But are you telling me that even at the age of 18 Ferguson is already under a long term contract? How long does his current contract go?
And we’d get a player we need far more.
This kid has a long way to go to prove himself. Brighton is the right place for him.
June 2026, signed five months or so ago
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I don’t know why we’d go after Ferguson for the ridiculously high price we’d be quoted unless he was already on a level akin to Ruud van Nistelrooy from 20 years ago. There’s no guarantee he’d follow the expected progression curve people might put him on. He could have petered out two years from now and he’d be just your standard run-of-the-mill Premier League striker, which may be great for Brighton but not good enough for a team like United.
It funnily enough reminds me of another Irish striker in Robbie Keane, who never really hit that top bracket of strikers despite that early teenager hype.
It funnily enough reminds me of another Irish striker in Robbie Keane, who never really hit that top bracket of strikers despite that early teenager hype.
I'll preface this by saying that (a) Brighton from the outside appear an excellently run club and United would be in a far superior position if they'd shown half the acumen in acquiring and cultivating players on a proportionate scale in the last few years and (b) I don't think United will pay what it takes to get Ferguson this summer, with FFP and the other pressuring issues. Nevertheless, IMO it's wildly optimistic to think Bloom's turning down, say, an upfront 70m for a promising but relatively unproven 18 year old with half a season of football under his belt - even with today's Chelsea skewed market.
It was less than 2 years ago Aaron Connolly was being tipped for a move to Tottenham and heralded as potentially the new Robbie Keane for the Rep after a smattering of goals - whilst there's a chance AC'll become a half-decent striker for one of the yo-yo clubs or even develop into a glenn murray able to get double figures in PL, it's clear he's v. unlikely to hit those initially-hoped heights. Ferguson looks to have a stronger all-round skillset, but he's young enough that you never know which way it's going to go....
Excellent post, very balanced and fair. Thank you. Great point re: Connolly, although as you mention there are some differences between the two players. Not just in skill sets, but in professionalism. As I mentioned in the Caicedo thread, I’ve had some indirect involvement with the club due to my line of work, and reliably heard there were problems with Aaron from the get-go on both the playing front and off the pitch. I’m pleased Connolly is finally finding his feet again now on loan at Hull. Incidentally, he was briefly linked with a move to Spurs - on the basis of his one excellent performance for us… his full debut at home against Spurs!
Ferguson is a different beast. An entirely different type of player and personality. You’re absolutely right too that with young players anything can happen - but having watched Evan for a few seasons for our PL2’s, his improvement week on week has been frankly astonishing.
As for your point re: Brighton selling… the fee would be indeed be huge. But Bloom wouldn’t be telling. Officially, all our young stars are “not for sale”. Obviously there will be moments when an offer gets too huge to turn down sometimes (Cucurella for £60m+, for instance), but the club have shown they’re able to turn down enormous club record offers if the sale doesn’t suit their needs for the playing squad/finances. Turning down over £70m for Caicedo a few months ago evidences this.
If Manchester United made an enormous offer along these lines, I don’t doubt the club would accept and reinvest - but it bears an enormous risk for the buying club for the reasons you’ve stated.
So if United buy him for a fee that Brighton would accept then that’s “an enormous risk” for the buying club. Yet you’re not even alluding to the possibility of a risk for Brighton of not accepting a slightly lower fee for a player who may end up flattering to deceive.
At the end of the day all that any of us are quibbling over is the price. And time will tell regarding whether he be a player worthy of a top dollar fee, or an also ran who should have been cashed in on during the early hype.
I say this as an Irish football fan who thought Spurs would make a fortune out of Troy Parrott at some point. That’s still just about possible but it’s equally possible Spurs will regret not cashing in when his stock was at its highest.
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The only risk to Brighton is letting him go cheap. If he develops like he has next 2 seasons he be worth over £100m minimum in my opinion. The money Brighton paid for him was minimal. The only way he will develope is with Brighton as we can offer regular playing time.
Remarkable, and based on recent British reports a new and improved contract is being negotiated right now.
It appears young Evan is going nowhere for the time being.
I don't think we'd offer a ridiculous fee for this player anyway. He's simply too unproven for our ambitions. But you're right that it's also a risk for Brighton to refuse a big offer as he may just meander into mediocrity / goodish thereafter. It happens with a lot of players.
Seems like a top bloke! And a United fan as a kid…
As an Irishman I’d rather he stayed at Brighton a bit longer and grow in a stable environment. While ETH looks to finally be the manager we have needed, the club has been a basket case for a decade and I am slightly concerned that if Sheik saudi takes over we may get more of a circus PSG style club then a more stable city structure.