SAM Gallagher has the potential to become Saints’ answer to Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

That was Jose Fonte’s assessment after the teen striker scored his first Premier League goal in the win against Norwich City.

“You can see he’s very strong, very tall and very powerful and he has teammates like Jay Rodriguez and Rickie Lambert to teach him so he can only get better,” said Fonte, pictured right, who reckons the 18-year-old’s strengths are comparable to one of the world’s best players.

“He’s a little bit like Ibrahimovic. He still has to work a lot to be like him but he has pace, he has power, he’s tall so he can be a threat in the air and in behind with his pace. He’s a handful!

"He has good attributes for a striker, definitely. If he keeps working very hard he can get to that level and be the full package.”

Gallagher’s injury-time finish against Norwich was his second senior goal for Saints, having also scored as a substitute in the 2-0 FA Cup win against Yeovil at St Mary’s two months ago.