Weekend in Review: A new star is born as Evan Ferguson continues to show that he’s the real deal!

If you thought the first week was a hugely positive weekend for the Irish lads playing in the UK, the second weekend blew it out of the water! We had Sinclair Armstrong put his name on the map, Evan Ferguson with a top class cameo and much more.

It’s only fair that I start off with the man of the moment Sinclair Armstrong who has officially arrived. Last week against Watford he came on at half time at 4-0 down and showed he was the only shining light for QPR and on Saturday he got a deserved start against Cardiff and took the opportunity by scoring ,assisting and winning MOTM! The love Sinclair receives from R’s fans is possibly the best connection between a player and fans in football at the moment. The nicest lad in football finally got his moment he deserved. Sinclair Armstrong is going to be a star!

If I ask you to do one thing all day please watch this interview with the nicest lad in football!🇮🇪

The emotion and joy on Sinclair Armstrong’s face the whole interview is heartwarming.

What a player and even better guy!💚pic.twitter.com/8vRcohx00f

— Rep of Ireland Player Tracker (@reptracker) August 13, 2023

In Premier League action we had John Egan make his return to the PL with Sheffield United, this time as club captain but the Blades were edged out by Crystal Palace in a 1-0 defeat.

Nathan Collins made his debut for Brentford in a 2-2 draw vs Spurs. He played on the right of a back three and has already become a fan favourite with some top notch distribution.

On Friday night we saw Josh Cullen and Dara O’Shea have impressive performances against a daunting Manchester City side. Cullen captained Burnley on his first ever Premier League start and was ever so calm in possession despite City’s full court press. O’Shea showed on his debut exactly why the Clarets spent seven million on him with some top defending and even more impressive was his ability on the ball. Despite a 2 nil defeat both lads can come away from the game with their heads held high!

The Brighton vs Luton game is where the headlines were really stolen from an Irish point of view. We had Cheodozie Ogbene come as a substitute to make his Premier League debut but wonderkid Evan Ferguson continued to show why he’s the real deal. Although only playing thirteen minutes Ferguson really gave us a show to watch. A goal in “fergie time” but he showed us much more than just a simple tap in. His movement, link up and most importantly to me his football brain looked like an experienced pro. He’s a special talent and my question is if Brighton sold Caicedo for £115 million how much will they be looking for Fergsuon in a year or two?

Onto three Ireland call up hopefuls , Aaron Connolly scored his first goal of his second stint at Hull City against Sheffield Wednesday in what was a straightforward goal for someone of his ability but from Connolly’s celebration after it looked like that pressure of scoring again was off his shoulders. Connolly is loved by fans and the staff at the tigers!

Sammie Szmodics had a tale of two halves where in the first half he missed a penalty and gave away the ball that led to Rotherham doubling their advantage. Szmodics showed his class and leadership in the second half, he could have dropped his head and been taken off after sixty minutes but he went on to score two goals and secure a 2-2 draw for Blackburn!

Danny Mandroiu has started off to a flyer this season with two huge performances in the last week. He was by far MOTM against Wycombe on Saturday in a 3-0 win getting a goal and two assists to his name! The only problem for Mandroiu now is he looks a class above the league he’s in and is probably the only thing holding him back from being in Stephen Kenny’s plans!

Danny Mandroiu’s goal from yesterday!🇮🇪

He also had 2 assists in the game. What a start to the season he is having!

A top class player.☘️

🎥 (@m4tt_h)https://t.co/2U1douC7Rk

— Rep of Ireland Player Tracker (@reptracker) August 13, 2023

Some other standout moments from this weekend:

Will Keane – Goal and assist vs Sunderland in a 2-1 win, that’s now 2 in 2 for Keane!

James Collins – Goal in a 3-0 victory over Burton Albion.

Conor Noss – First league start for Blau Weiss Linz vs LASK in a 2-0 loss.

Festy Ebosele – 67 minutes played for Udinese in a 4-1 victory over Catanzaro in the Coppa Italia.

Matt Healy – Scored in his Belgian Challenger Pro League debut against SV Zulte Waregem in a 3-1 win!

Who stood out to you this weekend?

Conor/ @reptracker