“The fans probably hadn’t heard of me before kick-off, but they have now.”
Those were the words 17-year-old Joel Asoro used to describe his goalscoring bow in pre-season in Evian.
The young Swede lit up the Stade Camille-Fournier as Sunderland battled to a 3-2 win over Dijon FCO with fellow academy hopefuls watching on back home in sheer delight for their team-mate.
Asoro’s mesmeric rise saw him make a lightning start to the under-18s last season before he went on to net a sensational hat-trick in a 5-1 victory over Mansfield Town in the FA Youth Cup in December.
While an injury kept the forward sidelined for the back end of last season, Asoro has begun the new campaign in fine fettle, arguably better than he ever imagined....
In the fourth edition of 'The Beginning' Sam Lightle has spoken to second-year scholar Owen Gamble about the aspiration of one day following in Asoro’s footsteps.
With Asoro around the first-team mix, fellow scholar Elliot Embleton has also been credited with first-team appearances in the last few months.
And while the youth team watch on as their team-mates are presented with opportunities, Gamble told safc.com their rise highlights just how close they are to reaching the elite level.
“Joel has proved that football changes so quickly,” he said. “At the end of last season he was playing for the under-18s and now he has made his first-team debut and he even started against Shrewsbury in the cup.
“It just shows you how fast things can change in football but those kind of opportunities come about through hard work.
“They have put the work in and it’s a great motivation because while it seems a long way off all it takes is one split moment to change.
“To just be around the academy is great and to see someone like John O’Shea around the place is amazing,” he continued.
“It's a good environment to be in because when you look at how many medals and trophies he has won over the years it gives you a great motivation to really strive for the top.”
