According to Chronicle Live, Sunderland’s 19-year-old forward Josh Maja has attracted interest from Premier League clubs Manchester City, Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, following his stellar run of form in the League One.
Maja has scored goals for fun in the current season, having scored 9 from 12 appearances in the League One. The 19-year-old is currently the top scorer in the third tier of English football.
The Black Cats haven’t had the best of times in the recent past, having faced back-to-back relegations. However, the meteoric rise of the teenager has given the fans something to cheer about.
As the big clubs come sniffing around, let us take a closer look at one of the brightest young prospects in the lower divisions of English football – Sunderland’s Josh Maja.
Born to Nigerian parents in the London Borough of Lewisham, Maja grew up in Pimlico, London. He played for the youth teams of Fulham and Crystal Palace but was refused a scholarship at Manchester City. However, Sunderland granted him admission to their academy and Maja signed his first professional contract in 2016. He made his professional debut in the same year in the League Cup.
Although he was a part of the Sunderland squad that was relegated from the Premier League in 2016/17, he made his mark in the next season in the Championship where he appeared 17 times and scored a goal.
And he has risen to prominence in the League One this year, spearheading his team’s attack in the absence of the regular players.
Maja is primarily a centre-forward but can drift to the flanks to use his pace. He has got a fairly good technique as a forward and has admirable awareness inside the box to get into scoring positions. This video gives us a clear idea of his sense of awareness as a forward –
Maja is capable of maintaining good close control and has the ability to use his pace and dribbling skills to get past the defenders in the final third. He has a tidy first-touch and does not stick to his position, often enjoying a free-roaming role in the attacking third. At times, he drops deep and uses his vision to link the play with his teammates. Take a look at this outrageous assist –
The 19-year-old is extremely confident for his age and does not lose his shape in front of the goal. He has shown a sense of maturity that belies his age in terms of composure and decision-making in the final third. A look at this video gives us a clear idea of his calmness, composure, technique and movement in front of the goal:-
Young Josh Maja has certainly attracted attention with his incredible goalscoring record in the League One, with the likes of Southampton and Manchester City. registering interests.
Going by his raw talent, training at the big clubs will definitely take his game to a new level. Even if he remains on the fringes, he will get the opportunity to train with some of the best players around and that should do a world of good for the youngster.
A regular starting place in the Premier League might be far away but few can deny that he has a bright future ahead of him.