Josh Maja

Sunderland

Maja was not offered a scholarship by Manchester City and in March 2015, Fulham reached an agreement with Sunderland for him to sign a two-year scholarship. In May 2016, he signed his first professional contract with the club, penning a three-year deal. On 21 September 2016, Maja made his professional debut in a 2–1 victory at Queens Park Rangers in the third round of the EFL Cup, replacing Joel Asoro as a substitute for the final 21 minutes. He did not play again that season but did appear on the bench during their Premier League campaign, which ended in relegation. Maja made his league debut on 16 December 2017, when he came on for James Vaughan at the Stadium of Light, going on to score his side's only goal of the match five minutes subsequently; the game resulted in Sunderland's first home win of 2017 and against Fulham, his former team during his youth. Manager Chris Coleman spoke positively of Maja afterwards, stating, "I've been very impressed with Josh. He's different, he gives us a big injection of personality". Maja went on to make 17 appearances in the Championship that season, failing to score anymore following his goal against Fulham, with the club suffering a second consecutive relegation, now to League One. Relegation proved well personally for Maja, as he broke into the side's starting line-up; he went on to score in all of Sunderland's first four games in August, earning him a nomination for Player of the Month. With his contract due to…

In August 2019, the Nigeria national team manager Gernot Rohr said he wanted Maja to represent the nation. He made his international debut on 10 September in a 2–2 friendly against Ukraine, replacing Victor Osimhen in added time.

Club

As of match played 12 September 2026

International

As of match played 10 September 2019

Born in the London Borough of Lewisham to Nigerian parents, he grew up in Pimlico, London. As a youngster he played for the youth teams of Crystal Palace and Fulham, and also played for Manchester City.