Palace target ‘reminds me of Declan Rice’

Crystal Palace are reportedly keen on West Brom youngster Nathan Ferguson.

The teenage defender has been a revelation for Albion at left-back this season after injuries in that position forced boss Slaven Bilic to turn to Ferguson.

Ferguson is primarily a right-back and the Daily Mail say he has been identified by Palace as a potential replacement for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who left for Manchester United during the summer.

A number of full-backs have been linked with Palace since Wan-Bissaka’s move, including former Eagles star Nathaniel Clyne.

Now Ferguson appears to have been lined up for a move to London, having last month scored in the capital – his first goal for West Brom.

That goal was a cracker scored during Albion’s win at QPR, after which Bilic heaped praise on Ferguson and likened him to West Ham’s England midfielder Declan Rice.

“Nathan has a mentality that reminds me of Declan Rice,” Bilic said during his post-match press conference.

“He’s only 18 on paper but his mind is 25 or 27 – he’s not a kid. He’s only a kid in a positive way in that he’s not afraid to take the ball forward and have a shot.

“It’s our job to keep him humble but there’s no doubt that he has an extremely bright future and a great career in front of him.”