'Evan is Evan' - John Egan dispels clamour for Ferguson comparisons to Harry Kane
Republic of Ireland defender John Egan believes Evan Ferguson's physicality for a player so young is as impressive as he's encountered in his career to date but also feels it is unnecessary to pigeon-hole the young striker into comparisons with the likes of Harry Kane.
Ferguson made his first start for the Boys in Green against Latvia on Wednesday night at the Aviva Stadium and the 18-year-old marked the occasion with his first senior international goal as Stephen Kenny's side won 3-2.
His form for Brighton had already caught the eye since New Year's Eve when he netted his first Premier League goal against leaders Arsenal and with further goals in the English top flight and FA Cup, he had come into the current international window on a high.
Ferguson, whose attitude around the Irish camp is impressing Egan, has been compared to Tottenham's record goalscorer Kane - more of a late bloomer than the Bettystown native - in some quarters over recent weeks.
But Egan, who has come up against the England captain in the Premier League, said it wasn't necessary to compare his international team-mate to specific players.
"He's his own man, he's his own player. I don't really compare players. Every player's different," the Sheffield United centre-back told RTÉ Sport at the FAI's announcement of its partnership with Circle K, the association's new official fuel and convenience partner.
"Evan is Evan and he plays his own type of football and he's playing it really well, so hopefully he can carry on doing that."
Underpinning the development for the 6ft 2in striker has been size, strength and an ability to hold up play and having come up against him in training, Egan admitted he hasn't seen many players of a similar age possessing a similar