West Ham United have signed Brighton & Hove Albion forward Evan Ferguson on loan until the end of the season.
Ferguson, 20, will be reunited at West Ham with head coach Graham Potter, who managed him at the start of his career at Brighton.
Enter Evan Ferguson ⚒️ pic.twitter.com/HFw1IIXz5O
— West Ham United (@WestHam) February 3, 2025
“I’m delighted we’ve been able to bring Evan in on loan until the end of the season,” Potter told the club's official website.
“He’s a player we obviously know very well, so I’m grateful to the Board for bringing him in.
“He’s got plenty of quality attributes as a striker that we believe will benefit the group over the course of the coming months.
Ferguson, who will wear the No 34 shirt, spoke of his delight at joining the Hammers. “I can see and know how big West Ham United is," he told the club's official website. "It was a big opportunity for me to come here. I know the gaffer well and look forward to working under him again.
“I want to come in and do my best for the Club, score goals, and see where we get to.”
Ferguson helps to strengthen a Hammers forward line hit by injuries, with Michail Antonio (leg), Niclas Fullkrug (hamstring), Jarrod Bowen (foot) and Crysencio Summerville (muscle) all currently out.
The Irishman has scored 13 Premier League goals in 60 matches, with one of those coming in 2024/25, a campaign where he has largely featured off the bench for Fabian Hurzeler’s side.
Injuries have restricted Ferguson from fulfilling the potential that he showed early in his career. In 2023, he scored 11 times in the Premier League, going level with Wayne Rooney for the most Premier League goals in a calendar year netted by a teenager.
In September 2023, Ferguson became the fourth player in Premier League history to score a hat-trick aged 18 or younger in the competition when he struck a treble against Newcastle United.
Comparisons with Shearer and Kane
Such was his form, Ferguson was compared to the likes of Alan Shearer and Harry Kane by Tim Sherwood and Glenn Murray back in 2023.
“I heard people talking about him – probably wrong as it was very early but whether rightly or wrongly – talking about Shearer in the early days – this boy is special, he has got talent,” said Sherwood.
“I believe he could be at Harry Kane’s level. His stature, his ability. The thing that bowls me over the most about him is his attitude. How humble he is as a young man,” added Murray.
Since making his senior debut for Republic of Ireland in 2022, Ferguson has made 18 appearances for his country, scoring four goals.
He has not been signed in time to feature in tonight’s Premier League match at Chelsea, but the striker could make his debut for the club at home to Brentford on 15 February.
