91Èȱ¬

Peterborough United boss Darren Ferguson has said the deal to sign striker Dwight Gayle was completed amid interest from Premier League sides.

The 22-year-old has scored six goals in seven games while on loan at Posh from Dagenham & Redbridge.

He will complete a permanent move, worth up to £750,000, on 2 January.

"Because of what he's done, all of a sudden it's caught everyone's attention," Ferguson told 91Èȱ¬ Radio Cambridgeshire.

"There were a lot of clubs watching him, including from the Premier League.

"The deal was more or less done, verbally. We spoke about it with Dagenham and they stuck to their word. It's a lot of money for us as a club and at the minute he's doing very well."

Gayle, who had only made 18 League Two appearances before joining Peterborough, has formed a productive forward partnership with Lee Tomlin.

The pair have started the last six games together and helped Posh to victories in their last three matches, including Boxing Day's impressive 3-0 win at Wolves.

"The last four or five games Lee has played the best he has under me," said Ferguson.

"He enjoys playing with Dwight, there's no question about that. You always like to get partnerships. It was a lot of money on Dwight but it's well spent by the chairman."

Posh's run of form has lifted them off the bottom of the Championship and is the first time since the 1992-93 season that they have won three consecutive games in the second tier.

"To win one game at this level is hard enough. To win three is fantastic," added Ferguson.

"But I don't want us to stop there. We've got the confidence and belief back that we can win against any team in this league.

"We can't let up now. It's the time to up the ante and see where it takes us."