Stephen Kenny delighted with Evan Ferguson's 'dramatic rise' as France opener looms
EVAN ALMIGHTY; Evan Ferguson of Republic of Ireland, right, comes on as a substitute for team-mate Chiedozie Ogbene during the International Friendly match between Malta and Republic of Ireland at the Ta' Qali National Stadium in Attard, Malta. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile
When the match shouts mismatch, any sliver of solace has to be grasped.
Ireland, whose World Cup finals drought has lurched past 20 years, open their competitive campaign on March 27 against a France team that have reached the final of the last two global showpieces.
Star quality is omnipresent within Les Bleus – from Kylian Mbappé to Real Madrid pair Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni and Antoine Greizmann. There’s no certainty that Paul Pogba’s return to fitness will trigger an international return.
Against that profile and pedigree, Ireland are rank outsiders to pinch even a point before the full house.
Scan beyond the obvious and there’s smidgeons of hope.
For starters, Didier Deschamps will bring his squad to Dublin just 72 hours after sparring with a Netherlands outfit equally entitled to believe they can qualify for Germany next year as table-toppers.
And then there’s the component the French lack – a teenage poacher whipping up a frenzy in the English Premier League.
Evan Ferguson may still be only 18 and without a minute of competitive international football but don’t let that stop the prospect of a shock resting on the forward’s broad shoulders.
This is, after all, the only Irish striker to be picked by a Premier League team this season.
Five goals and four assists cement his status as shoo-in to lead the line and carry Ireland’s hopes.
“He’s played against him twice, and he’s beaten them twice,” Kenny emphasised, noting Ferguson’s early dry-runs for Brighton and Hove Albion against Ibrahima Konaté, the French defender in the Liverpool ranks.
“I was at the FA Cup game in Brighton when Evan was a victim of a very bad tackle and went off injured.
“What Evan does is make the game look simple. He takes the ball in, protects it very well, lays it off and has good movement in the box.
“He has the ability to score goals with that movement and good finishing – including headers, which nowadays forwards are not as prolific at.
“Evan doesn’t complicate it, he’s not someone who dribbles at people at pace. But it’s early days and we’re still learning about him.” Kenny got a glimpse of that talent in November when introducing the Bettystown tyro off the bench in the two friendlies against Norway and Malta.
He’s yet to share the Ireland attack with Michael Obafemi or Adam Idah, two strikers the gangly forward won’t have a problem partnering, according to the manager.
A “serious” hamstring injury sustained by Callum Robinson robs him of one option for the two upcoming games.
“Against France, we’ll have to see but they can definitely play together,” Kenny affirms about Ferguson’s compatibility.
“There is good competition upfront. Michael had a great run and looked like a really good player for us.
“We have Adam coming back from injury and playing for Norwich City. He can lead the line, offering you speed in channels and opens up the game with his pace.
“Troy (Parrott) was injured as well for nearly four months but there are good options there.
“But Evan’s enjoyed such a dramatic rise - accelerating quicker than we could have expected but we're delighted with it.” Kenny had already indicated the runout against a Latvian side ranked 133 in the world would provide an audition for fringe players ahead of the sterner test five days later.
A light lead-in contrasts with France’s, who begin their quest by tackling the second and third seeds three days apart.
“We’re not sure whether France will play the same team in both or make four or five changes – which they can easily do,” Kenny said about anticipating the French line-up that’ll face in Dublin 4.
“Their players are used to games every three days, operating at Champions League level, so it’s nothing for them really.
“We are pleased that our game against Latvia is on Wednesday rather than Friday when France plays.
“That’s by design to give us the best opportunity because we need everything we can get in this game.”
Another leisurely build-up precedes Ireland’s second qualifier, the trip to Greece on June 16, and lessons from last year’s defeat to Armenia forced a rethink on bridging the players’ gap between club and country duties. Final games for most of the English Championship and League One cohort, bar those in the playoffs, is May 8.
“Within two weeks of the season ending, we’ll hold a four-day training camp in England and head to Turkey for nine days in June.
“We didn’t want to play Greece in the June heat but we’ve to plan accordingly. We need the players coming in match-fit, at the same level that they finished, and Turkey will have a similar temperature to Greece.”
At least he’s got ice-cool Ferguson at his disposal to quell red-hot France first.
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