Sunderland youngster Josh Maja has nine goals in 13 matches in League One.
Sunderland youngster Josh Maja has been immense in front of goal this season; the striker currently topping the League One scoring charts with nine goals.
The 19-year-old was heavily relied on by his side at the start of the season in the absence of summer arrival Charlie Wyke, but the forward held his own nicely.
Maja had one of his poorer games against Shrewsbury last weekend, but Sunderland manager Jack Ross said the young player has to avoid being too hard on himself in an interview with the Northern Echo.
When speaking about Maja, Ross said: “For a young man, he’s very self-aware. He’s scored in a lot of games this season, but there have been times where he’s scored and he’s still been critical of himself because he’s looking at his all-round performance.
“He’s got a real appetite to get better, and we spend a lot of time with him individually, looking at parts of his game. I don’t think I have to worry in that respect, it’s just making sure he doesn’t become too hard on himself.”
Maja has nine wonderful goals on his resume this term, but the forward recorded what was his first all-round poor display of the season at Greenhous Meadow last weekend.
The Black Cats are still heavily reliant on his goals, but nowhere near as much as they were when teammate Wyke was first injured, with Chris Maguire, Lynden Gooch and other midfielders getting in on the scoring.
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