“Keen to prove himself” – Middlesbrough eye transfer move for Premier League player: The verdict | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Middlesbrough are eyeing up Premier League talent ahead of the January transfer window.

That is according to the Daily Mail, who report that Boro are one of a number of Championship sides monitoring the progress of Brighton and Hove Albion forward Evan Ferguson.

The 18-year-old joined Brighton from Bohemians last January, and has featured five times for the club so far.

He also has two senior Republic of Ireland caps to his name after making his international debut earlier this month.

With the above in mind, three of our FLW writers have offered their verdict on the move below.

Adam Jones

This is a difficult one because you don’t want to take Marcus Forss out of the starting lineup.

Doing that won’t help the Finland international’s development but results have to come first and if Ferguson can be a better asset in the first 11, then they may be well served bringing him in.

However, with the money generated from Djed Spence and Marcus Tavernier’s sale, they could surely fork out on a higher-profile signing to create more competition for the likes of Chuba Akpom and Rodrigo Muniz.

The addition of another forward may also allow Matthew Hoppe to go out on a much-needed loan spell – but is Ferguson the man they need to get them in the promotion mix?

They already have one loan forward at the club in Muniz and may benefit from someone more experienced – so they may benefit from opting against this move for now.

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Ned Holmes

It would be a surprise not to see Middlesbrough try for a striker in the January window and Evan Ferguson appears an interesting option.

Their summer recruits have not cut the mustard as of yet and Michael Carrick will know that consistent goals could be the difference between mid-table and a top six finish.

January loan signings from the Premier League can be successful but as Boro found out last term, it doesn’t always work that way.

Even so, it makes sense for the Teessiders to pursue a move for the 18-year-old, who is attracting a fair bit of Championship attention.

A young and hungry forward keen to prove himself could be just what Boro need.

Simmey Hannifin-Donaldson

Whilst Middlesbrough could definitely do with another goalscorer in January, it’s hard to say Ferguson can be that right now.

He is just 18-years-old and relying on a young player embarking on their first real foray into regular senior football could be a mistake if Boro still have ambitions of play-off success this season.

I could be totally wrong here, but given he isn’t proven, it’s hard to see Ferguson coming in and having a huge impact in terms of goals for Michael Carrick’s side.

Nevertheless, it would be fantastic experience for him to go out and get regular minutes in a division as high as the Championship and really show what he can do.