Evan Ferguson: The Missing Piece in Arsenal's Forward Line

Time for Arsenal to sign Evan Ferguson. We all know a move or a deal for Osserman looks unlikely. While we're linked with Llores, we appear to have no clue as to whether there's tangible proof that Arsenal will sign them. Why not go back in for a man that the Athletic have name dropped and said Arsenal have a long-term interest? Once again, could Evan Ferguson of Brighton be the answer to Mikel Arteta and Arsenal's striker woes, worries and issues? Other clubs, namely his boyhood club that he supported, Manchester United, Chelsea, who sign more players than we can count people, are looking at readying a bid in the region of £50m. Whether that is deemed acceptable for Brighton or not, but if we assume a bid of £50m or around that region for the 19-year-old Irish international and a young player making steady progress in the game in a day and age where, let's face it, the striker market to us normal fans doesn't appear too good. Now, is that a by-product as to what the current game demands of a striker, which actually doesn't always appear to be goals? I'm not too sure, people. What could he be worth going for? Let me know. I mean, you look at him, he's 19 years of age. Evidently, he is a work in progress. You look at the first two years after signing for Brighton in January 2021 and it's been a steady progression for him. Just a few months after he turned 16, we all know he began knocking on the door. He started to make an impact at senior level at Brighton, first under Graham Potter, and then became a vital piece of Roberto Di Zerbi's squad since he took over the now Marseille manager. I mean, there's a lot to like about Mr Ferguson. He's agile. He's energetic. He's obviously a brute. He's got the physical capabilities to trouble defenders, but he can play football. Obviously, there's numerous improvements the man could make at this age. He's 19. He's not going to be the finished article, but he can play like a big man, a traditional striker, and also mix it up in terms of his general play, making great runs, so on and so forth, people. He's more than capable, as I've said, with coping with the physical demands of Premier League football. I believe he's got clever movement off the ball to receive the ball in between the lines. He's very good at receiving it on the half-turn. He's very good at hanging on the defender's last shoulder, and he instinctively looks to take his opportunities in front of goal, which we don't have clinical strikers, despite the fact that we got 91 goals, and yes, our whole team, specifically the attackers, have the capabilities and the capacity to score goals. We haven't got that natural striker, that striker who has that natural instinct in which this 19-year-old has. Take nothing away from Kai Havertz, would you describe him as clinical? Would you describe Gabriel Jesus as clinical? Would you describe Gabriel Martinelli as clinical? Would you describe Trossart as clinical? They've all got the capacity to score goals, but if anybody in this Arsenal team is anything close to being described as clinical, it would be Bakayo Saka. His numbers have put that up. Dare I say, if we're looking in August ahead of the game against Wolves people, and we was to bet our life savings on who is going to get a handsome return of goals, people, the smart money would be on Saka. The bookmakers' odds wouldn't be too favourable in that regard. All the other players have the capacity to do it, but we can't answer the question as to whether they will bag. I think it's clear, Arsenal to go to the next level, we need a central midfielder, hopefully Moreno's through the door. We probably need a wide forward. My guess is as good as yours as to who that would be. And in an ideal world, we get that number nine. We get that striker, people. As I said, I think he's got the physical capabilities. I think he's got the mental capacity as well to cope with the theoretical demands. He's a constant threat on the goal front. He's got fluidity and flexibility in his game, which helps his team press from the front. And also when dropping into midfield, he's happy to stay higher up the field and offer a physical outlet. Likewise, he's able to come short. As we know, with football currently demanding strikers who can run in behind and also drop to link with runners and actually act as a decoy for other attackers to take advantage of. He's got all the raw ingredients, in my opinion, to succeed at the highest level in the game. As I said, he's got a great agility in this game. He adjusts his body quickly. He effectively works himself into great goal scoring opportunities. He reacts to the flight of a football well. He takes instinctive shots and he's got a powerful shot with a lot of backlift, if I'm completely honest with you. And he's also coped with being a lone striker, which typically a lot of people struggle with in that regard. When you look at Brighton historically in the last few years, people, they rely heavily on central build-up play in which they're striker. And for this video, Ferguson would have to play a crucial role in connecting with his fellow attackers and teammates. Whenever, you know, you break it down and, you know, their midfielders are able to play a vertical pass or their defence is able to play a defence splitting pass, Ferguson is on the move. And that is what I like in this young player. He's always on the move. He doesn't just sit and wait for things to happen. He's very proactive in that regards people. And there's a lot to like about him on that front. So if 50 million was enough, if a regional 50 odd million pounds was enough to get him, I'm not against that. You know, I'm not against signing half of the strikers we're linked with, even someone like Ivan Toni. But when you break it down at 19 years of age, if they did want 50, 60, 70 odd million, considering the way he's spoken about and his potential at 19 years of age, surely there's more longevity and the potential resale value. And to a degree, maybe even less risk than when you look at a Jocarez who looks quality. But some would say he's only done it for one year at Sporting Lisbon. Osserman seems to be the fans' favourites. But I think if we was all watching him on a regular basis, game in, game out at Napoli, we might not be looking at him as the messiah. Now, clearly, Jocarez and Osserman have a bigger stature in world football. They're clearly experienced more. They're clearly better strikers at this moment in time. But surely Mikel Arteta, who has a proven track record of improving existing players, and mainly young players, could work a treat. And again, Ferguson would tie into long term what this football club is doing. Now, in terms of improvements, again, when you're 18, 19 years of age, there's going to be a lot of volatility in your performance. You look at his amazing, stunning even breakthrough in the 2022-23 season. He got 11 goals and four assists in 28 games. I'm also sure he scored against Arsenal when we travelled to their place, people. Six of those goals and two of the assists came in 19 outings in the Premier League. Now, unfortunately, that is a far cry from what we saw last season, where he did kind of struggle and was rotated in and out of the side. Obviously, at 19 years of age, there's a lot of raw ingredients. There's a lot of things he does well. But naturally, it's about churning that out and fine tuning. He's not the finished article. He is subject to fluctuation in performances and things of that ilk. I still think he needs to improve on his decision making, when to shoot, when to pass. Sometimes he can put too much power in a shot. Also, as much as I like the fact that he takes instinctive efforts, people, sometimes you probably need to be a bit more calm, collected and calculated in that regards, people, if I'm completely honest. And naturally, the Premier League is a difficult league. He's still learning to perform consistently at the highest level. Despite his potential, in my opinion, as someone that doesn't watch Brighton week in, week out, he's seen as potentially a more rotation option. When you break it down, he actually hasn't started and completed 90 minutes that many times last season. A handful of times, he got 77 minutes. Sorry, I believe he got 90 minutes in about four or five games. Then you're looking at the 77 minutes against Boris, the 75 minutes against Man City, the 74 against Fulham, the 69 versus Palace, the 60 also in the reverse fixture against Nottingham Forest, the 81 against Newcastle and the 60 versus Liverpool. And he also got three goals in one game. So consistency, maybe physically recovering, maybe coping with the demands. These are clearly things that he needs to be able to address. But last season was tough on him. And again, people, he missed 13 games due to injury. Now injuries are to a footballer what cutting your finger is to a chef. It comes with the territory. And I know in this day and age where you talk about young players, you expect them to be the finished article, which isn't the thing if I'm honest. But I believe at 19 years of age, he's got a good base level that can be improved upon at the club. He would fit our remit. We have a registered interest in the striker. So we have to know what he's about. That being said, though, Brighton are very notoriously difficult to do business with. This is a player that allegedly they have high hopes for. They previously described him as a hundred million pound player in the making. We all know the track record of Brighton and the several players they brought in and the profits they've made, including someone even like Benjamin White, who we bought for 50 million off the back of one season. So we have to see. As I said, and I keep saying this because I want this to be the theme. He's not the finished article. De Zerby has questioned him actually in possession, even though I don't think his possession stats are terrible. But could that be a benefit for us? Because he would arrive with pressure, but without the pressure of a Jocorez or a Osserman. And he would be allowed to kind of push for a regular spot without, in theory, necessarily disrupting the starting 11 of potentially Martinelli slash Trosser on the left-hand side. And at this moment, Kai Havertz through the middle and the second choice would be Gabriel Jesus. That being said, though, I must admit that is irrelevant because if we need to go to the next level, we need level raises. Now, if you put Arsenal's strongest 11 out mentally while you're listening to this video and you look at our front line, our front three, Saka is the only one. Unless you're bringing someone, whoever that is, that's better than him, forget about it. He's there. Can you approve of Kai Havertz on the goalscoring front? Can you improve on the left-hand side? If you want to get to the next level, do you not need to improve on these sort of positions, regardless of what I've just said? So it's a bit irrelevant. And also he's recently, last year, signed the new deal, essentially. So he's at Brighton for a significant moment in time. They're going to need a lot of money to part ways with him and he's not going to come cheap. On the face of it, 12 goals in 47 Premier League appearances may not be eye-catching. Neither is 16 goals in 65 overall appearances for Brighton. But as we know, strikers peak late and I genuinely believe the sky's the limit for him. And let's be honest, we don't know what Edu and Arteta are planning, but to us fans, we're running out of options where strikers are concerned. So if Manchester United and Chelsea really do whet the appetite of Brighton's negotiating men and women to sell, should we be involved where Ferguson is concerned, people? I'm not too sure. On that note, thank you for listening. Let me know your thoughts, people. Don't forget to check out the rest of the other content, like, comment and subscribe. Most importantly, stay safe, stay blessed. Peace.