Evan Ferguson recently made headlines after signing a new, long-term contract with Brighton; a well-deserved reward for one of the Premier League’s most sought-after teenagers.
It allows his club to negotiate a favorable transfer fee when the big clubs come calling for Ferguson‘s signature, but it also provides security to the 19-year-old striker should his current path take an unfavorable turn.
Brighton CEO Gives Evan Ferguson Update
While the club will want to keep Ferguson for as long as possible and will not want to explicitly admit that he may be leaving soon, Brighton CEO Paul Barber has given further indication of how he sees Ferguson‘s career unfolding in an interview with Soccerex TV.
Evan has been with us for several years, and we have a great connection not only with him personally, but also with his family, which makes a big difference with his agent.
He has a lot of talent. He’s still quite young. He still has a lot of things to learn. He’ll be the first to speak up and the first to volunteer to learn.
However, he is also delivering in the Premier League, and when you have a striker who is already delivering at that level, he deserves to be paid what the going rate is for someone who is delivering at the highest level in the domestic game.
“And you know, that’s something we’d like to do,” Barber added. “Make certain that players are rewarded.
“When we can put them on long contracts to give them security, give us security, but most importantly, with young players, to help them keep learning, because Evan’s going to be playing at an even higher level if his trajectory continues.”
“And we want to make certain that we do everything in our power to prepare him for that.” Give him all of our support, not just on the field, but also off the field.
“I believe, as I previously stated, that the higher level we can play at, the better our chances of keeping our top players for a longer period of time.” It does not mean that we will be able to keep them indefinitely, because players will have their own goals in terms of the club they want to play for, the league they want to play in, and the competitions they want to compete in. And we must be mindful of this.
“And I believe, and Tony Bloom [Chairman of Brighton] believes, that if we can show players clear pathways, not just through our club, but also beyond our club, that will help us attract other younger players in the future.”
“Which is good because it keeps our model moving.” It keeps our cycle going and, hopefully, keeps us successful.”
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