CANARY KID JAMAL IS FLYING SO HIGH
INTERNATIONAL honours, a new contract and now the EFL Young Player of the Month award – life is pretty sweet for Norwich defender Jamal Lewis right now.
The 20-year-old leftback played a big part in the Canaries’ resurgence in September – they won four and drew one of their five Championship games as well as winning 4-3 in a Carabao Cup thriller at Wy- combe Wanderers. His displays didn’t go unnoticed and he’s scooped the prestigious EFL Young Player accolade, which has previously been won by the likes of Dele Alli, Wilfred Zaha, Jonjo Shelvey and his former Norwich team-mate James Maddison – who all now play in the Premier League.
Success
His success at club level goes hand in hand with further international recognition with Northern Ireland – he earned caps against Bosnia & Herzegovina and Israel last month and also featured in their 1-0 defeat to Austria last weekend.
He also recently signed a new fiveyear contract with Norwich, taking him through to June 2023.
Despite the success and plaudits going his way, Lewis won’t be easing off the throttle.
After picking up his trophy, the Luton-born defender said: “It’s a nice achievement to have, but of course it helps with the team performances we put in during September.
“It’s a proud moment for me, a nice milestone and hopefully I can kick on and improve. I set myself some targets this year, to be involved more in the attacking phase whilst also remaining responsible at the back.”
As for the highlight of the month, Lewis picks out the 1-0 victory at QPR.
“I felt I put in a good performance and it seemed to play out like a home game for the team,” he said. “We really dominated the proceedings, set the tempo and we could have won by a bigger margin.” New for this season, all contenders for the award have to be a ‘Club Developed’ player – a player who has been registered with the relevant club for a minimum of 12 months prior to the end of his U19 season.