Evan Ferguson was pleased to make his West Ham United debut against Brentford, and feels getting 45 minutes under his belt will help him settle after delivering an encouraging display from the substitutes’ bench.
The Republic of Ireland international showed glimpses of his quality after coming on as a half-time substitute, holding the ball well, drawing fouls and providing a threat in attack, which saw him denied several times by the Bees’ stubborn rearguard, but showed a clear taste of things to come in Claret and Blue.
With his first game for the Club under his belt, he is looking forward to playing more matches in the coming weeks and understanding better how his team-mates play.
“For me personally, it was good to get back out there and make my debut for the Club, but I think as the game goes, we all know as a squad and as a unit that it needs to be better,” said Ferguson.
“I think after the first half, we knew it was probably hard to get worse than it was, so as a substitute, you want to come on and make an impact, and I think the three lads that came on, we gave the team a lift. If you are going to lose a game, you lose it by playing like we did in the second half.
“It was tough work, but I think I've played against teams like that before, and I knew what to expect and was well prepared as we had worked on it during the week.”
The 20-year-old made an instant impact from the bench, setting up Mohammed Kudus with virtually his first touch, but our No14 fired narrowly over the crossbar from close-range.
Ferguson has been in east London for almost two weeks after joining the Hammers from Brighton & Hove Albion on deadline day, and is excited about the fresh start under Graham Potter.
“You obviously need to see it from his [Mohammed Kudus’] perspective, but it's not easy, though it was definitely a chance,” admitted Ferguson.
“I feel all right, to be fair. I think it's good that I'm in a new place, a new environment and sort of having that fresh start.
“It's been good to work with him [Graham Potter] again. I obviously know him well from his time at Brighton, but he's come in and has new ideas, so it's been a positive start, and I feel I've settled in well. It's been all I could've asked for, and now it's time to let my football do the talking.”
Next up for Ferguson and his team-mates is a visit to title-chasing Arsenal, and the No34 is relishing the challenge, and believes the Irons can upset the odds again next weekend.
He looked ahead to that game, saying: “We’re looking forward to it. They [Arsenal] are a big team, and they're flying at the moment, but hopefully we can get a result.”
