Evan Ferguson has signed a new contract with Brighton which ties him to the club until 2029. The 19-year-old Republic of Ireland international has extended his existing deal, amid reports that other Premier League clubs are tracking his progress.
“Evan deserves this new contract and he has a very big future ahead of him,” said Brighton head coach Roberto De Zerbi. Ferguson joined Brighton from Irish side Bohemians in January 2021 and made his first-team debut later that year in a Carabao Cup tie against Cardiff.
He has scored 15 times for the first team since then, having opened his account against Arsenal last December. “Evan is a brilliant young talent and we are delighted for him,” said Brighton technical director David Weir. “He’s shown his ability at club and international level, after breaking into the team at the start of the year, and we are looking forward to working with him and watching his continued progress.” Ferguson made his senior Ireland debut in March, scoring in a 3-2 win over Latvia.
Newcastle United: On the week of the second anniversary of his appointment as Newcastle manager, Eddie Howe takes his side to Bournemouth for tomorrow evening’s 5.30 kick-off. He will take a depelted squad to the Vitality Stadium, with – deep breath – Sandro Tonali, Jacob Murphy, Dan Burn, Harvey Elliot, Sven Botman, Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak, Javier Maquillo and Matt Targett all among the lame, halt or suspended. Callum Wilson is also an injury doubt with a hamstring issue.
“Have I ever had this many missing?” said Howe. “Not to this level. But I don’t want to build it up to be any more than it is. We’re still good enough.” Asked for his thoughts on his team’s season so far, he had this to say. “The players have done incredibly well to adjust to the difficult start that we had, that has been a test of their character. We have been close in those games but didn’t get the results we wanted; it has been an intense period.
“We have been stretched mentally and physically but the players have responded well and that is a big compliment to what they have given. Now we need to finish this period off well at Bournemouth.”
Liverpool’s manager, Jürgen Klopp, said his Colombian forward Luis Díaz was “really happy” after hearing his kidnapped father had been released a few hours before the club’s Europa League tie in Toulouse.
Luis Díaz Sr was taken along with his wife, Cilenis Marulanda, on 28 October in their home town of Barrancas in Colombia’s northern La Guajira state, although Díaz’s mother was freed hours later. After a long wait and days of negotiation with the guerilla group the National Liberation Army, Díaz’s father was released yesterday.
Europa League: Todd Cantwell was among the goals as Rangers moved clear into second place in their Europa League group with what turned out to be a nervy 2-1 win over Sparta Prague at Ibrox.
Europa League: Jarell Quansah was denied a dream first goal by VAR in the final minute of added time as Liverpool squandered a chance to secure qualification for the Europa League knockout stage with defeat in Toulouse.
Europa League: Lucas Paquetá scored the only goal of the game as West Ham won their ninth consecutive home victory in European competition with a win over Olympiakos. Ed Aarons was there to see them do it …
Europa League: Brighton took control of their Europa League destiny with a commanding 2-0 win against Ajax at the Amsterdam Arena to complete back-to-back victories over the Dutch giants.
With another international break looming, we’ve a big weekend of Premier League action to get in the rear-view mirror before assorted players fly off to various far-flung corners of the globe to represent their countries.
One man who won’t be doing so is James Maddison. The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has withdrawn from the England squad with an ankle injury he picked up during his side’s chaotic defeat at the hands of Chelsea on Monday night and will remain in London for treatment at the hands of his club’s physios. England are due to play Euro qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia in the next fortnight but have already secured qualification for Germany 2024.
We’ll bring you more news on that and everything else of note that’s going on once assorted Premier League managers start flapping their gums for the benefit of the ladies and gentlemen of the Fourth Estate at their Friday news conferences.