17-year-old Sunderland Goalkeeper Matty Young has earned plenty of plaudits during his loan spell with National League North side Darlington, with some fans on Twitter (X) comparing him to former goalkeeper and current England number one Jordan Pickford.
Young would join the National League North strugglers in mid-February and has held down the number one spot since his arrival. That has also coincided with a rather incredible turn of form for Darlington who have won 10 of their last 14 matches.
A 3-1 win against Farsley Celtic on Saturday would secure the Quakers’ safety and it’s fair to say Young has played a large part in that. Since his arrival, the goalkeeper has conceded just 12 times in 12 matches, keeping a further four clean sheets. As a comparison, Darlington had kept just five clean sheers in their previous 32 league matches, conceding 59 times at a rate of 1.84 goals per game.
Young has been a real hit since joining the sixth tier side and it seems as if he has an incredibly bright future ahead of him. Despite only joining the club in February, he’s had a huge impact and even earned Darlington’s Young Player of the Season award. At just 17 years of age, the sky is well and truly the limit.
The goalkeeper has also been included in recent England Under-19 squads which further emphasises his talent and fans of both Sunderland and Darlington have been quick to make some assumptions about his future.
A post by Craig Stoddart on Twitter (X), received some great engagement from both fanbases, who were unified by the goalkeeper’s exciting future.
Darlington fan Simon Brodie wrote:
““At this age, he’s better than Pickford. More composed. Just exudes his confidence. I get it’s at a different level, but I’m stating it now, he’s a future England number one. He’s the real deal.”
A Sunderland fan added:
“He was outstanding in pre-season in the USA tout… Future Sunderland no.1”
Another Sunderland fan commented on his qualities despite his young age:
“Seen him a few times at darlo when the lads been away from home. He is quality, commands his box and distribution is first class.”
Sunderland have a proven track record with producing goalkeeping talent, Jordan Pickford being the most notable. It seems as if they may have found their next future star in the form of Matty Young, who could well be in and around the matchday squad at the Stadium of Light next season.
That being said, loan moves at a senior level are perhaps better for his progression at the minute and it would not come as a surprise to maybe even see him at a League Two level next year.
It’s been an incredibly successful second half of the season for Young, who looks sure to have a big future ahead of him. Even though he is only 17, he’s taken to senior football like a duck to water and will only improve for the experience.
He should make a step-up next season, whether that be to the matchday squad at Sunderland or another loan further up the pyramid, he’s certainly a youngster to be excited about.
With some uncertainty about who will be number one at the Stadium of Light next season they do at least know that they’ve got a potential future number one in their ranks, and that call may come sooner than some may think.
