'Unfair' to compare Ferguson and Fullkrug who are 'different personalities, different type of players' - Potter

ON BENCH: Evan Ferguson watched from the bench for yesterday's clash. Pic: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Premier League: West Ham 2 (Fullkrug 61', Bowen 68') Bournemouth 2 (Evanilson 38', 79')

West Ham United made a further dent in Bournemouth’s chances of European football at the London Stadium on Saturday in a match that eventually came to life after a dismal start. And apart from the paying customers, one of the most interested spectators must have been Evan Ferguson, who watched the entire match from the bench.

To some media voices, Ferguson’s loan move from Brighton to West Ham in January made a lot of sense. After all, was not Graham Potter, the Hammers head coach, the man who handed the Ireland striker his first-team and Premier League debuts on the south coast? And was there not a space to fill at the sharp end of the West Ham team, with Michail Antonio sidelined after a car crash and both Jarrod Bowen and Niclas Fullkrug prone to injury?

Yes to the first question, but when you looked a little closer, Potter had given Ferguson only 22 minutes of Premier League football in a home defeat by Burnley, with the game already lost. It was not until Roberto de Zerbi had replaced Potter that Ferguson was given a run of games, hitting 11 goals in 27 games for club and country as Brighton reached the Europa League for the first time in their history.

As for the second, Ferguson has made only six appearances for West Ham, five of which have been as substitute. At first he was deemed not to be fully fit. He seemed to be making progress when he made his first start for the club at Wolves in midweek but he was hooked at half-time in the 1-0 defeat. Warming the bench for 96 minutes on Saturday felt like a step back again, and it must have been frustrating when both he and Fullkrug were passed over for the role of starting central striker in favour of Bowen, who is very few people’s idea of a conventional number nine.

And when the first substitution was made, it was Fullkrug who got the nod, and made the most of it with a battering-ram header to cancel out Evanilson’s first-half goal for Bournemouth. The Germany striker went on to look every inch the player for whom West Ham had paid Borussia Dortmund £27m last August.

It was the sort of display that Ferguson had once looked capable of before the mysterious loss of form that followed his hat-trick for Brighton against Newcastle United in September 2023, which some fear may prove to have been the high-water mark of his career.

“Niclas has had a significant injury over a period of time so we are still building his minutes up, he's not ready to start a game,” Potter said. “His impact there was clear, not just the goal but how he helps the team. He's a focal point, he makes things simpler. He’s had a season where it hasn’t been straightforward for him. But we need to remain patient, although he’s always ready to help the team. He’s a big old-fashioned centre forward but he also has some touches, some link-up play and if we get him fit and enjoying his football he can really be successful.” 

It was striking how many of Potter’s remarks could also have applied to Ferguson. But when the Irish Examiner asked Potter whether Ferguson could learn from Fullkrug’s performance, the reply was: “Different personalities, different type of players - one is 32, 33, was playing in a Champions league final not so long ago, the other is a young player from another Premier League club who has had some injuries and is at a stage where he just needs to keep working, keep moving forward. I think it’s unfair to compare the two.” 

Their attack transformed by Fullkrug’s arrival, West Ham went on to take the lead with a header by Bowen, before Evanilson’s second for Bournemouth tied the scores at 2-2. It left the Cherries without a win in six Premier League matches and probably needing snookers if they are to reach Europe with tough-looking fixtures to come against Fulham, in-form Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Manchester City. “We have to start making three points from the next game at home,” Kepa, the goalkeeper, said. “We have to be strong because otherwise the chances they are gone.” 

West Ham (4-2-3-1): Areola 4; A Wan-Bissaka 5, Todibo 5 (Mavropanos 84), Kilman 5, Scarles 4 (Emerson 46, 6); Alvarez 6 (Soler 54, 5), Ward-Prowse 5; Kudus 4 (Guilherme 85), Soucek 5 (Fullkrug 54, 7), Paqueta 5; Bowen 6.

Bournemouth (4-3-3): Kepa 6; Smith 6 (Hill 67, 6), Zabarnyi 6 (Senesi 78), Huijsen 7, Kerkez 6; Adams 6, Cook 7; Outtara 7 (Winterburn 78), Scott 6 (Brooks 67, 6), Semenyo 6; Evanilson 7 (Jebbison 90).

Referee: T Robinson.