Brighton & Hove Albion striker Evan Ferguson signs new long-term contract

The 19-year-old has established himself as one of the Premier League's brightest prospects since the arrival of head coach Roberto De Zerbi just over a year ago.

Ferguson has scored 15 goals in 43 appearances for Brighton across all competitions, including 10 strikes in 25 games last season as the Seagulls finished sixth in the Premier League and qualified for the Europa League for the first time in their history.

The eight-cap Republic of Ireland international was subsequently named Brighton's Young Player of the Year for 2022-23 and was also nominated for the PFA's edition of the award.

Ferguson has since chipped in with five goals in 11 Premier League appearances this season, including an impressive hat-trick in a 3-1 home win over Newcastle United in September - before he turned 19 last month - becoming just the fourth player to ever scored a Premier League hat-trick aged 18 or younger after Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Chris Bart-Williams.

In 2023, Ferguson has scored 10 goals to date, with his latest strike in a 1-1 draw with Fulham making him the first teenager since Wayne Rooney back in 2005 to reach double figures for Premier League goals in a calendar year.

Ferguson's impressive rise with Brighton is understood to have caught the eye of a number of top European clubs including Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid.

However, Ferguson has opted to pen fresh terms on a new contract at Brighton until the summer of 2029, just seven months after he extended his original Seagulls deal that ran until 2028.

"Evan deserves this new contract and he has a very big future ahead of him," De Zerbi told Brighton's official website.

Technical director David Weir added: "Evan is a brilliant young talent and we are delighted for him.

"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's new deal comes three weeks after Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma signed a new long-term deal until 2027, and just over a week after goalkeeper Jason Steele put pen to paper on a contract that runs until June 2026.

Brighton's No.28 came on as a second-half substitute in Thursday's 2-0 win over Ajax in the Europa League, and the striker will be hoping to return to the first XI for Sunday's Premier League clash at home against Sheffield United.