Furlong tips Ferguson to shake off the rising price tag
IN HIS STRIDE: James Furlong believes that Evan Ferguson is taking everything in his stride. Pic: Cardy/Sportsfile
Evan Ferguson’s former Brighton teammate James Furlong insists the £100m price tag attracted by the teen sensation won’t faze him.
Ireland U21 squad member Furlong last week completed his move to Hull City but is watching closely as his friends grasps global headlines.
Saturday’s hat-trick against Newcastle United was the only the fourth time that a player aged 18 or under has accomplished the feat over the 31-year Premier League era.
Ferguson’s reputation was already soaring before his latest contribution, with the inevitably of him operating at a higher stage garnering discussion.
The Seagulls recently banked a British record fee of £115m from Chelsea for Moses Caicedo and that would easily be matched or exceeded was the Bettystown striker to maintain his arc.
Furlong, speaking ahead of Ireland’s U21 Euro qualifiers on Friday in Turner’s Cross against Turkey and San Marino next Monday, is certain the waves of attention won’t affect Ferguson, either on or off the pitch. While the left-wing back joined Brighton’s academy from Shamrock Rovers, he soon had a compatriot when Ferguson moved from Bohemians, after spending most of his development at St Kevin’s Boys.
“Evan is the same person I first met and he hasn’t changed at all,” said 21-year-old Furlong.
“Everybody would say the same about him and he’s a top player as well.
“I’d never played with or against Evan in Ireland until he moved to Brighton but you could see from the minute he arrived that there was something about him.
“To make the set-up from the Under-23s to first-team so quickly was really impressive. He’s taking it all his stride but to score a hat-trick at his age was brilliant.
“His background keeps him grounded. Evan is a really humble guy with a great personality, which helps.
“He knows it’s going well but is also aware that this is only the start and has a whole career ahead of him.
“He’s aware to stay grounded and keep doing this because football can quickly change. He would be aware of that because that’s his personality.”
Furlong gained a half-season of Scottish top-flight experience by joining Motherwell last January but will be wearing a different orange shirt for his latest venture.
Hull manager Liam Rosenior is also of Brighton stock, cutting his teeth as U23 manager before moving up to standalone boss at Derby and currently Hull City.
They sit sixth in the Championship table following a blistering start to the season spearheaded by Aaron Conolly.
He too was an Irishman who left Brighton for a fresh start.
“I only completed the transfer last week so will head back to Hull after this international break to try compete for a place in the first-team as quickly as possible,” said Furlong of his ambitions.
“When I spoke to Liam last week, he told me to use my quality and potential to show what you can do. He’s put belief in me that I can really help the club in the future.
“Aaron made me feel really welcome last week as well. He’s had tough times but every player does and he’s now starting games and scoring goals. He’s on his way to being the best he can be.
“Hopefully he keeps playing for Hull and he was delighted to be called back into the senior Ireland squad.” In U21 squad news, Wigan Athletic defender Baba Adeeko has been called up to replace Alex Murphy, the Galway native who got injured on Saturday playing for Newcastle United in Saturday’s U23 fixture against Manchester City.
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Goalkeepers: Killian Cahill (Brighton & Hove Albion), Josh Keeley (Tottenham Hotspur), Owen Mason (Wexford, on loan from Mansfield Town)
Defenders: James Abankwah (Charlton Athletic, on loan from Udinese), Baba Adeeko (Wigan Athletic), Sam Curtis (St. Patrick’s Athletic), James Furlong (Hull City), Anselmo Garcia MacNulty (PEC Zwolle), Sean Grehan (Crystal Palace), Bosun Lawal (Fleetwood Town, on loan from Celtic), Sean Roughan (Lincoln City) Midfielders: Zak Gilsenan (Blackburn Rovers), Tyler Goodrham (Oxford United), Matt Healy (Royal Francs Borains), Ed McJannet (Lecce), Adam Murphy (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Killian Phillips (Wycombe Wanderers, on loan from Crystal Palace), Rocco Vata (Celtic)
Forwards: Sinclair Armstrong (Queen’s Park Rangers), Conor Carty (St. Patrick’s Athletic, on loan from Bolton Wanderers), Aidomo Emakhu (Millwall), Johnny Kenny (Shamrock Rovers, on loan from Celtic), Andrew Moran (Blackburn Rovers, on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion), Tony Springett (Norwich City)
Friday, September 8 | Ireland U21 v Türkiye U21, Turner’s Cross, Cork, KO 7.30pm
Tuesday, September 12 | Ireland U21 v San Marino U21, Turner’s Cross, Cork, KO 7.30pm.
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