Evan Ferguson: 'I used to watch Danny Welbeck every week and now he’s a teammate'

Evan Ferguson of Brighton & Hove Albion attempts to score during the Emirates FA Cup Third Round match against West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns on January 08

Teenage Irish striker Evan Ferguson is content to be learning off his experienced elders at Brighton and Hove Albion as he builds on his first-team breakthrough.

Graham Potter took his latest calculated step to integrate the 17-year-old into his fold by introducing him off the bench in Saturday’s FA Cup win at West Bromwich Albion.

It followed his debut against Cardiff in the EFL Cup but might have been sweeter had the winner come from his boot – as he had thought.

It proved immaterial to the outcome as strike partner Neil Maupay grabbed the decisive extra-time goal to set up a fourth-round tie against Tottenham Hotspur.

“I grew up a Manchester United fan, so I used to watch Danny Welbeck every week and now he’s a teammate,” Meathman Ferguson, a product of the St Kevin’s Boys schoolboys set-up, said on Monday.

“It’s weird playing and training with him every day. There’s a few guys who look out for me in the group. Obviously there’s the Irish connection with Shane [Duffy], he looks after you. But even in training, if you have good movement or you could have better movement, they’ll tell you.

"They are used to it every week in the Premier League. With strikers like Neal Maupay, Danny Welbeck and Leandro Trossard, you get to see different types of movement and learn from it.

“I feel good when I am training with the boys, it’s helping build my confidence and my game up.” 

On almost becoming an FA Cup hero at the Hawthorns, the Ireland U21 attacker reflected: “I thought I’d scored the winner in front of the fans on Saturday.

“I couldn’t see the ball because it was behind the goalkeeper, so I was already running over to the fans to celebrate and I was devastated when it landed on the roof of the net!

“The fans travel in numbers to every away game and give us the support that we need.

“It was good hearing your name – it gives you even more motivation to try and win the game.”