Brighton confirm that Evan Ferguson's season is over

Evan Ferguson will not play for Brighton & Hove Albion again this season and is a big doubt for the Republic of Ireland's June friendlies, as he continues to recover from an ankle injury.

The striker has been out of action since late March after suffering an injury against Liverpool and manager Roberto De Zerbi confirmed that he will not line out out for the Seagulls again this season.

Speaking ahead of his side's Premier League clash with Manchester City, De Zerbi revealed that Ferguson had been attempting to play through the pain barrier but that they have decided to end his season now in order to recover fully.

The Brighton boss said: "Evan felt pain in the ankle a lot of time and he tried to move on, to play with pain. But at the end he preferred to stop and to think about next season."

De Zerbi has been dealing with a lengthy injury list – with defender Pervis Estupinan also set to miss the rest of the season.

While Brighton did not put a date on Ferguson's return, it looks highly likely that he will be sidelined for Ireland's June friendlies with Hungary and Portugal.

With the FAI pushing the announcement of a new senior manager to September, John O'Shea is likely to be in charge for those two games but FAI Director of Football Marc Canham revealed that they have yet to agree a deal with O'Shea.