Young Maja has proved that he has got what it takes
IT is time for a rethink on
Josh Maja.
The teenage academy graduate is no longer Sunderland’s ‘next big thing’ – his moment has come.
Going into the season, Maja was regarded as a back-up striker with summer signings Charlie Wyke and the on-loan Jerome Sinclair expected to spearhead the attack, while new manager Jack Ross was looking to add a fourth frontman if finances allowed.
Yet the fact no fourth frontman arrived, Wyke was injured when he joined and missed the start of the season, and Sinclair picked up an injury on the opening day, gave Maja a platform to shine.
He has seized it with both hands, with his performances in August deservedly earning him the EFL Young Player of the Month award.
Maja’s scintillating start has seen him score seven goals in the first nine games.
To put that into perspective, that is the best start to a season for any Sunderland striker since Darren Bent scored eight times in the opening nine matches on his way to a 25-goal haul in 2009-10.
For those who have followed Maja’s progress through the ranks on Wearside, his goalscoring talents have come as no surprise.
He had already caught the eye of the coaching staff before then-boss Simon Grayson predicted a bright future for him in the summer of 2017 after the youngster top scored with four goals in pre-season.
Unfortunately for Maja – and for Grayson – an injury in the penultimate friendly at Bradford City ruled him out for four months and by the time he was fit enough for firstteam action there had been a change of manager and the Black Cats were already up to their necks in a relegation battle.
Maja scored on his Championship debut against Fulham to spare Sunderland the indignity of completing a full calendar year without a home win but could not add to his tally despite being playing a part in another 16 league games.
This summer’s massive turnover of players on Wearside saw Joel Asoro – who emerged from the academy around the same time as Maja – leave for Swansea City in a £2m deal, while the likes of Fabio Borini, Jeremain Lens and Wahbi Khazri were bundled out of the door and Ashley Fletcher returned to Middlesbrough at the end of his loan.
As previously mentioned, Wyke and Sinclair have struggled with injuries and, thankfully, Maja has stepped up to the plate.
This is his breakthrough season and, while there is certainly room for improvement in some aspects of his game, he has earned the right to be considered a fully-fledged firstteamer in his own right – and not as a mere backup option, either.
‘If he is good enough, he is old enough,’ as the old footballing axiom goes.
At 19, Maja has come of age.