WHEN JOHN O’SHEA spoke yesterday about the prospect of “new combinations, new understandings” in this Republic of Ireland team, the player sitting to the right of the assistant head coach might be one set to benefit most.
Evan Ferguson managed two substitute appearances in Heimir Hallgrímsson’s first two Nations League games in charge last month. Eight minutes against England was followed by a little over half an hour in the 2-0 defeat to Greece a few days later.
Ireland need a different kind of threat in the final third for this upcoming away double header with Finland on Thursday and Greece on Sunday. Experimentation is on the cards so the prospect of Ferguson being partnered in a two-man attack, alongside the lively Sammie Szmodics, could provide the spark required to avoid ending the week bottom of the group in League B.
Szmodics may still be looking for his first international goal, and the 19-year-old is feeling his way back to full match fitness after undergoing ankle surgery at the back end of last season, but are they capable of bringing out the best of each other?
If Hallgrímsson is ready to gamble early on in his reign to try and find a combination in attack that works then Ferguson and Szmodics in unison would make sense.
Ferguson’s last goal for club or country came almost a year ago – for Brighton against Nottingham Forest last November – and he seems sanguine about the situation.
“Obviously it’s good to score goals as a striker. Maybe get me back into a flow of getting that rhythm and back scoring goals again and what I want to do, but I wouldn’t say I’m going out of my way to score a goal,” he said.
“I’m just playing how I’m playing, I’m not trying to force anything. If you start doing that then you start overthinking stuff and you end up going backwards.”
That ankle injury was not the only one to take its toll on the teenager’s body over the last number of months.
Ferguson suffered bruising of the bone after a reckless tackle from former Liverpool midfielder Fabinho in early 2023 led to initial fears of a far more serious knee injury.
The teenager was lucky to escape structural damage to the knee and also avoided a more serious Achilles issue when the Brazilian raked his studs down that part of the body.
Ferguson did have to nurse a problem with his ankle before finally making the decision to go under the knife last April. It’s obviously not easy as a player but it’s probably the first period I’ve had of it and people tell you to expect the ups and downs,” he said.
“When you’re in it, it’s not a nice place but I’m out of it now and I feel good. I’m ready to go.”
In the aftermath of that Greece defeat, Hallgrímsson spoke about players struggling with Ireland compared to their clubs. “It feels like the jersey is too heavy for some players. When they put them on, they don’t show the same quality… So we need to change that.”
This assertion was put to Ferguson. “Maybe it’s just from the fact that we’ve not picked up the results that we’ve wanted,” he said.
“I think it could be a confidence thing. When we get the ball rolling and we pick up points and get a few wins, then it could be a different story. But I think it’s easy to look at the negatives when you are not doing well.
“I think everyone feels confident. No one wants to come in and lose two games. I think we just need to come together and realise where we are, and go from there.”
So much of what was said about Ferguson before a difficult last 12 month remains true now. His instincts in and around the box are sharp, his technique and ability of elite standard. He still has a strong mentality and a support system around him that provides the right kind of guidance.
“Look, I think we all know what Evan has done already at international and at club level,” O’Shea said.
“So we just want him back up to speed as quickly as we can in terms of being fully fit, games under his belt and knowing what he can produce, and just getting that consistency going. Then we will see the levels he can reach.”
Maybe having someone like Szmodics to link with, providing energy and a foil to feed off, can give Ferguson a new impetus in a green jersey. Hallgrímsson has already laid out what he expects.
“I think all the lads have gone into what he wants. We all know what he wants and how he wants us to do it. I think everyone can chip in and everyone can play the way that he wants us to play. We just need to wait for it all to click together. Then it will be good.”
No better time to start.
