Frustrated West Brom manager offers update on Nathan Ferguson amidst Spurs links

West Brom manager, Slaven Bilic, has expressed his frustration at failing to secure a new contract for rumoured Tottenham Hotspur target Nathan Ferguson.

The youngster has been an absolute revelation for the Championship leaders this season and looks destined for a career at a higher level.

The relationship between Ferguson and West Brom took a hit during the January transfer window when the Baggies reportedly blocked the teenager’s proposed move to Crystal Palace.

The 19-year-old, whose contract at the Hawthorns runs out at the end of the month, has thus refused to put pen to paper on a new deal.

The young defender has been a long-term target for Spurs (Daily Mail), and reports indicate that Tottenham remain one of the clubs vying to sign him when he becomes a free agent on June 30 (Football Insider).

Bilic has now admitted his frustration at failing to keep Ferguson at the club and insisted that the defender will be irreplaceable for West Brom.

When asked about the right-back’s imminent departure, the Croatian told Sky Sports: “To replace him, we would have to spend £15million for a full-back and we can’t spend that money on a player in that position.

“We did our best (to keep him). We gave him a chance when he was extremely young. Basically, there’s no point having academies, because you can’t tie the player up for long periods until he reaches a certain age.

“The player, the agent, the parents or whatever, they just take him and that has to be changed, because we are a good club, and we can’t buy another Nathan Ferguson.”

Spurs Web Opinion

I personally have always preferred Ferguson over Max Aarons as I believe the West Brom youngster potentially has a higher ceiling. Aarons has more pace and appears to be a bigger threat going forward but Ferguson seems better defensively and more composed on the ball than his Norwich counterpart.

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