While we may only be a year removed from his breakthrough in first team football at Brighton, many people are already discussing when Evan Ferguson will move from his current club.
The Irishman has been an absolute revelation at the Amex. He recently became the first teenager to score double figure Premier League figures in a single calendar year since Wayne Rooney, pointing towards the level of talent we are dealing with.
After his hat-trick against Newcastle earlier this season, there were already suggestions that Evan Ferguson would be the next £100million player to leave Brighton. It has previously been suggested that all of the big hitters in European football were keeping a close eye on his progress, with Chelsea and Arsenal among the club who were said to be considering a move for the forward as soon as 2024.
However, an exit next year looks like an unlikely prospect after the striker signed a new contract at Brighton that ties him to the club until 2029.
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Brighton opt against release clause in Evan Ferguson contract
That new contract will boost the price tag Brighton could seek for Evan Ferguson if they do eventually decide to sell the player, although there is no amount earmarked in the deal that would guarantee his exit.
The Athletic are reporting that there is no buyout clause in the Ireland international's new contract.
That seems like a smart move from Brighton.
The transfer market is changing all the time, meaning they could sell Evan Ferguson for an even higher fee than currently anticipated a couple of years down the line. After all, not many people would have expected that they would manage to get a British record £115million deal agreed for Moises Caicedo last summer.
That is a mark they could well look to surpass if Evan Ferguson does leave the club. Talksport recently reported that Brighton would only consider bids in excess of that £115million mark if another club does make an approach for the player.
The current record fee for an Irish player is the £23.5million Brentford paid to sign Nathan Collins from Wolves last summer. It's safe to say that amount will easily be blown out of the water at some stage over the coming seasons.
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