Tim Ream has joked that Ryan Sessegnon will have to score the promotion winner at Wembley before his Fulham team-mates buy him a birthday present.
Sessegnon turns 18 on Friday and he indulged in an early celebration on Monday night by scoring one and making another as Fulham overturned a one-goal deficit to advance past Derby in the Championship play-off semi-final.
The 17-year-old has hogged the headlines this year with a stunning a set of performances that has seen him clean up in the end-of-season awards and a big summer move beckons, regardless of whether the Cottagers get past Aston Villa to return to the Premier League next weekend.
And Ream believes there has never been a youngster like him, even if the Fulham squad are not going to treat him this week.
“What’s the team going to get him? Nothing, nothing at all,” Ream said. “If he scores at Wembley we will get him something.
“He has done some incredible things this season, there is no doubting his talent and his ability and work-rate.
“It is something that you don’t see with young players these days. He is completely different to any of the young players in every aspect of his game.
“He is the quietest kid I have ever met, at 17 he is so quiet and so different to all the other 17-year-olds.”
As well as his undoubted talent – Sessegnon has lightning pace and has bagged 16 goals and eight assists this season – Ream believes the teenager’s mentality is what sets him apart.
“He takes everything on board, he listens very well and tries to do what everyone is asking of him,” Ream added.
“You can’t argue with his approach this year, it’s just amazing what he has done and what he continues to do.
“I have never seen a kid so calm in the face of the media and he doesn’t yearn for the limelight, he doesn’t want it, he doesn’t ask for it, he just goes about his business and does his own thing.
“Nobody needs to change his approach or change him, he has taken everything as it comes this year and he has done it like a 35-year-old veteran, it’s amazing.”
This post was last modified on 16/05/2018