Sunderland forward Josh Maja now has ten goals in League One.
Jack Ross’ Sunderland extended their unbeaten run to 12 matches in all competitions on Saturday afternoon with a 1-1 draw at home to Wycombe Wanderers in League One.
And despite another match without a loss, the Black Cats displayed arguably their worst performance of the campaign so far and speculation as to whether the Scottish manager got his team selection right prior to kick-off is still there.
One of the players who fans were surprised to see in the starting line-up was Jerome Sinclair, who has bagged just one goal in all competitions this season and continues to struggle in red and white.
Sinclair should be praised for his hard work and tireless running even when he has struggled this term, but the Watford loanee simply cannot be a starter ahead of the in-form Josh Maja on that basis alone.
Maja came on the pitch in place of the out-of-form Sinclair just after the interval and his goal threat was evident throughout the second half, before the 19-year-old rescued a point for his side six minutes before full-time.
And the talisman’s contribution in comparison to Sinclair’s is clear and in order to prevent another poor half like the one against Wycombe last weekend, Ross has to trust Maja to lead the line.
Maja took his tally to 10 goals in the third-tier on Saturday and his strike wasn’t the first time this season that he has scored a goal which makes him look beyond his years.
His teammate, Sinclair, is undoubtedly a good option for his manager to choose from the bench when Sunderland need a workhorse in attack – but Saturday’s game proved exactly why Ross might’ve got it wrong for the first time this term.
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