His time at Hibs didn’t go to plan but he’s turned his career around and now is aiming for a long term Premier League stay.
Hibs proved a learning curve on his journey - and now the former Easter Road man is set for a major Sunderland reward.
The Hibees have struck a couple of deals with the recently promoted Premier League side in recent seasons. Nectar Triantis proved to be a hit, turning from defender to midfielder under head coach David Gray as the club finished third in last season’s Premiership. Hibs have eyed a return for the enforcer this summer but one has not been forthcoming.
Another who has swapped Sunderland for Leith in the last few seasons is Eliezer Mayenda, but he departed the club after four outings in the back half of the 23/24 season. Still only 20, Mayenda impressively responded to that disappointing stint with a breakthrough campaign at the Black Cats, playing 41 times with 10 goals and five assists across the forward line en route to their Premier League return.
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Eliezer Mayenda new Sunderland contract latest
Now transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has stated that the performances are set to be met with big rewards, as a new deal until 2030 is close to being penned. Other teams have shown an interest in the former Hibs man but he looks poised to remain at Sunderland for the long haul.
He tweeted: “Sunderland agree new deal for Eliezer Mayenda, set to be signed very soon and valid until June 2030. Despite interest from several clubs, Mayenda only wanted to stay at SAFC.”
Manager Regis Le Bris said earlier this year after a double against Sheffield Wednesday: “Eli is still very young. He is only 19 and he is still learning. Even when he is on the bench, he is learning because when you are a young player, you can learn from being behind Wilson, who has been very impressive this season. You have to wait for your opportunities, and if you are working well every day during the training sessions, then you can be happy, even if the situation is not necessarily the best one in terms of always being in the team.
How Eliezer Mayenda has shone at Sunderland
“When you have an opportunity, you have to be ready to play, and he showed some very good qualities with his performance. I thought he played very well. Wilson has done really well this season and for sure is one of the best strikers in the league. At the same time, we need two or three strikers to be competitive in this league. It was the right time for him to recover a bit and Eliezer was ready, he's trained properly and been connected with the team.
“It was very important to refresh the team because most of the players have played many games. The depth of the squad is really important. We had four or five players able to play, and they deserved to have this opportunity. They played well.”
Mayenda added: “Everybody knows that the Championship is not an easy league. Some players need a little bit of adaptation, a little bit of time to adapt to the league. It's just a physical league. I'm a Spanish guy. If you compare it to Spain, Spain is a little bit more technical, but I can play in the Championship. I try to show that I can play in this league in every game. I work every day on the training ground. I'm very happy to score, I will be trying to score in the next games, if possible. For the team, the most important thing is to win the game. If I play just 20 minutes or 90 minutes, for me it's the same thing.
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