Man Utd £50m bid for ‘superstar’ striker ‘laughed off’ by Premier League rivals

Manchester United reportedly made a £50m offer for Brighton and Hove Albion striker Evan Ferguson - but the bid was ‘laughed off’ by their Premier League rivals.

The Republic of Ireland international has become one of the most exciting young players in the Premier League after scoring 14 goals and providing four assists in 34 senior appearances for the Seagulls.

Ferguson continued to hit the headlines last month when he became one of the youngster players in Premier League history to score a hat-trick as his treble inspired Roberto Di Zerbi’s side to a comfortable win against Newcastle United.

There were suggestions several clubs across the Premier League and Europe were showing a series interest in trying to persuade Brighton into allowing Ferguson to follow the likes of Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo in making a big money move away from the Amex Stadium.

However, ESPN have revealed the Red Devils were unsuccessful with a £50m offer for Ferguson as their search for a new striker saw the Seagulls star and England captain Harry Kane both considered before Atalanta frontman Rasmus Hojlund eventually moved to Old Trafford.

United may well revisit their interest in Ferguson but Seagulls chief executive Paul Barber has already given an indication of how the South coast club view the future of their star striker.

He told talkSPORT: ‘In Evan’s case, it’ll be in at least five years’ time!

“‘Ultimately the technical staff are making the key decisions on where a player is in his development, whether he needs more first team games or needs to go on loan or if we need to trade earlier or later. Ultimately it’s going to be a collective decision but it’s driven by the technical staff and we’re relying on them to make those judgements regarding the players’ development.

‘There are times when it’s better for us to keep a player in and around our first team group, training with us and getting the odd first team appearance from the bench or in cup games, while on other occasions it’s better for them to go out on loan in Europe and others it’s better for them to stay in this country and be somewhere where we can keep a far closer eye on them.”