- Rónán MacNamara
- Thu, Mar 16 2023
Rónán MacNamara reports from the Aviva Stadium
Stephen Kenny admits he has been thoroughly impressed with how quickly Evan Ferguson has progressed this season but was coy on whether he would start the 18-year-old against France.
The Republic of Ireland welcome the French team to the Aviva Stadium as they get their UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying campaign underway on Monday week with many calling for the Brighton and Hove Albion striker to start the game.
Ferguson has progressed massively over the last five months, scoring four goals for the Seagulls including three in the Premier League and Kenny feels the teenager brings a touch of class to the pitch.
“Evan has had a rapid rise from briefly playing with Bohemians as a 14-year-old to playing regularly in the Premier League,” said Kenny when announcing his squad on Thursday. “Even from our last window he has made a rapid rise.
“He has been very good and he has made it look easy at times. He’s come in and he makes good decisions. He has a variety of attributes and he leads the line well, links the play well and has the capacity to score well and those are good attributes.”
Starting XI
The former Dundalk manager revealed he has a relative idea of what his starting XI will be for the French date but will wait for the next round of Premier League, FA Cup and Championship fixtures to play out this weekend before making any key selections for the Latvia friendly on Wednesday and the France game.
“We have to see [about starting Ferguson]. You can’t pick your teams too early. We have games at the weekend and he has another game on Sunday of course and then it’s a quick turnaround to Wednesday to the Latvia game.
"We hope he can play a significant part in the window. We need players who can start and come on given the intensity of the France game, for sure we will need that.
“I have a broad concept of what the team will be like but that can change quickly. We have to be cognisant of the Championship schedule which has been relentless. We want to peak against France, but the World Cup has loaded some fixtures with midweek games and some of those teams have been in the FA Cup as well.
“Burnley and Sheffield United have been managing championship runs with the latter stages of the cup competitions and I have to consider that with a view to selection against Latvia. We want to put in a strong performance against Latvia and bring the confidence ideally into the French game.”
Doherty dilema
A regular headache for Kenny during his tenure has been the sharpness of Matt Doherty who has once again struggled for playing time. Doherty was allowed to leave Tottenham on loan for Atletico Madrid in January but has made just one substitute appearance at the Wanda Metropolitano.
“It’s not ideal, with his last game for Tottenham it will be nearly eight weeks. He has shown a capacity to be out of the team for long periods and maintain a high level of fitness. It’s far from ideal but that’s the challenge that international football brings,” added Kenny.
Goalscoring
Kenny has been bullish about the goalscoring prowess of his side recently, with his team scoring 22 goals in their last 17 games and the 51-year-old is excited by the dynamic of his attacking options, including the addition of Mikey Johnston.
“The characteristics of our forward players are completely different to what they were two years ago. We have players like Chiedoze Ogbene, Michael Obafemi, Adam Idah, Evan Ferguson and Troy Parrott. They are direct, quick and can play different ways and Mikey Johnston who’s a dribbler,” explained Kenny who also hinted frustration at the injuries picked up by Adam Idah, Troy Parrott, Johnston and Michael Obafemi in the past.
“We have different qualities and are quite potent in attack. I feel we have a lot of potential there. Some of them have had injuries which has been an issue as well – Mikey and Troy for example and now Adam so that poses challenges they’ve not all had straight forward situations.”
