A former Hibs star is going to the Premier League with Sunderland - and seals a possible top flight chance for an ace who’s thrived in Leith.
A former Hibs player has helped Sunderland to the Premier League - and sent a thriving Hibee along for the ride.
Eliezer Mayenda spent the second half of the 23/24 campaign on loan at Hibs but exited quietly after just four outings with no goals or assists. He arrived alongside Nectar Triantis from the Black Cats and while the defender turned all action midfielder had a second coming at Hibs to great affect, Mayenda stayed to fight for his place at Sunderland.
He has managed to do so to in stunning fashion, scoring one of the goals in their 2-1 Championship play-off final win at Wembley against Sheffield United. It books Sunderland’s place back in the Premier League after Tommy Watson’s late effort sparked emotional scenes at England’s national stadium, capping off an incredible comeback story for Mayenda, who’s netted 10 goals this season.
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Former Hibs star helps book Sunderland return to Premier League
Commentator Daniel Mann said as the ball flew in: “Well finally they put it together and that is the result, Sunderland have suddenly produced a magic moment out of nowhere.”
What it means for Triantis remains to be seen, now that his parent club have reached the Premier League, with a possible top flight chance in England opening up. Hibs will likely be keen to have him again ahead of their European qualifiers in July plus defence of Scotland’s third spot. He became a virtual ever-present in David Gray’s midfield and form had him nominated for the SFWA Player of the Year award.
Mayenda said of his first season at Sunderland earlier this month to the Athletic, which included the spell at Hibs: “Last season was my first season and when I started training with my new team-mates I said to my dad, ‘We’ve a good a team here, we just need patience’. If we get patience, we can do something here, because these are good young players. I said it to supporters last season, ‘Patience. Let the players work, let the players work. The results will come’. When I saw the name Sunderland, I said to my dad that I didn’t want to go to the French First Division, I want to go to Sunderland. It was just my feeling, I can’t tell you why exactly, it was just a natural connection. Sunderland was special. I knew it was historic in England, it had been in the Premier League and everyone has seen the documentary on Netflix.”
Former Hibs man had unexpected chance
His boss, Regis Le Bris, said of Mayenda during the play-off run: “He got an unexpected opportunity. It’s rare when you work with your lineup at the start of the season and say: ‘This player will play 25 games, we can build a pathway for him’. More often, a player is in the squad but not really a starter.
“Then there is an injury and a player will seize this opportunity, because he is connected. He will say: ‘I’m here and I will show you’. The best players in the world are like that and Eli showed this quality. Even he didn’t expect this season. Now it’s a question of consistency.”
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