Brighton captain, Lewis Dunk believes that 18 year-old striker, Evan Ferguson has an “incredible” future in front of him.
Ferguson scored a hat-trick during Brighton’s 3-1 win over Newcastle last weekend to become only the fourth teenager to score a hat-trick in a Premier League match, alongside; Chris Bart-Williams, Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen.
“He’s incredible,” quipped Dunk on Ferguson’s achievement – as the 18 year-old Republic of Ireland international became the first teenager to score a hat-trick this century in the Premier League, during which he took his top-flight total to 10 goals.
Dunk proceeded to iterate that Ferguson is capable of achieving greater success as he explained: “I think he’s shown that on the biggest stage in the world. He should be proud of himself.
“He’s a humble boy, which is the best thing about him. He doesn’t get carried away with anything. That’s not going to change, the way he works hard every day.”
The skipper however warned that Ferguson is still at an age of maturity and development as he iterated: “He’s a young kid who’s got a lot of potential still to improve. What he’s doing now in the Premier League is incredible, but he’s got much, much more still in the locker.”
Dunk also spoke of Ferguson’s special qualities as he continued: “He’s a unique boy – the power he’s got, the strength. And his finishing ability is incredible.”
Manager, Roberto De Zerbi’s influence upon Ferguson’s progress also didn’t go unnoticed as Dunk added: “He’s got things he needs to improve on, and he’s working on that in training, his link-up play.
“I think he showed today that he’s learning from this manager, and this manager can take him to the top, top level.”
Milner Urges No Comparisons
Defensive summer signing, James Milner echoed Dunk’s sentiments on Ferguson’s “unbelievable” end product, yet praised Ferguson for his “ugly side of the game too and being the first line of defence,” which he believed was “outstanding.”
Milner has played with many great strikers throughout his career from Alan Shearer to Sergio Aguero and Mohamed Salah, yet has refused to compare Ferguson to those who have gone before him to ensure that his focus remains grounded.
Explaining why he refused to draw comparisons, Milner said: “They are both very good goal-scorers. But I don’t really want to compare him to anyone, because as soon as I do that it puts pressure on him – I want to make sure his head doesn’t get too big!”
“Evan set the tempo early on, he closed down and blocked a ball going forward,” continued Milner. “That might seem a minor thing looking at the game overall, but it sets a tempo. It shows his intent without the ball.
Looking ahead to the long-term future, Milner iterated that Ferguson has huge potential to be a household name as he added: “He is still so young but what a player for us and the ceiling is very high for him.
“The first goal, that was the sign of a goal-scorer – that natural movement in the box, sniffing out the chances, being on the move expecting a slip.
“He scores all types of goals and it’s up to us to keep his feet on the ground and keep driving him and keep pushing him.”
Milner also quipped that De Zerbi is always “on him hard as well, because he knows how good he can be and wants him to improve.”
Summing up his view on Ferguson after just two months together as teammates, Milner enthusiastically concluded: “He is a great lad with a great attitude, and he can only get better.”