Ranked: The top 5 Sunderland academy graduates with the highest current market value | OneFootball

Sunderland have undergone a huge change under their new ownership as they look towards a more self-sustained future after promotion back into the Championship.

There has been a change in attitude at the club, and direction, as they look to invest wisely after years of bad decision-making and poor signings, led them to languish in League One.

Under the ownership of Kryil Louis-Dreyfus and with Kristjaan Speakman as Sporting Director, the club are heading in the right direction.

The Black Cats currently have the youngest average age in their squad in the division and recruited the likes of Dan Ballard, Jack Clarke and Aji Aljese, all under 22.

It’s a huge step in a different direction and another important avenue for them is the success of their academy. The club has always produced good-quality youngsters who have made it to a high level with that looking like it won’t be stopping anytime soon.

Here, we take a look back at their past academy graduates, though. We list the top five, ranked by their current market value (Transfermarkt).

Quiz: What club did Sunderland sign these 23 foreign players from?

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Djibril Cissé?

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Joel Asoro (€1.5m)

Asoro burst onto the scene for the Black Cats in 2016 before becoming a regular in the 17/18 Championship season.

He forged an impressive partnership alongside fellow academy graduate Josh Maja before moving onto Swansea City after Sunderland’s relegation to League One.

He signed a four year deal with Swans but made just 14 appearances for the South Wales side before moving onto Djurgardens IF in Sweden.

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Duncan Watmore (€1.8m)

Watmore’s career can sometimes be a case of ‘what might have been’ if he didn’t suffer serious injuries. The winger was incredibly unfortunate after making his breakthrough in 2015 and was unable to contribute as the Black Cats suffered back to back relegations to League One.

He did stay until 2020 though before being released and signed for Middlesbrough where he’s clocked up 84 appearances in two and a half seasons so far, scoring 20 goals.

Josh Maja (€4m)

Maja hit form for Sunderland in the 18/19 season in League One when he sored 15 goals in 24 games as he helped Sunderland into promotion contention.

However, he turned the chance to sign a new contract with the Black Cats and was subsequently signed by Bordeaux in the 2019 January transfer window.

The 23-year-old has had loan spells with Fulham in the Premier League and Stoke City in the Championship but has now established himself as a regular with Bordeaux, scoring seven goals in 11 games in Ligue 2.

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Jordan Henderson (€15m)

The Liverpool midfielder has thrived at Anfield since his move in 2011.

He’s gone on to make 465 appearances for the Reds and has been captain since Steven Gerrard’s departure in 2015.

Not only that, but he’s won the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League and many more having become an essential player under Jurgen Klopp.

Jordan Pickford (€28m)

Another incredibly successful player to come from the Stadium of Light is Pickford. He signed for Everton from Sunderland in 2017 for £30m making him the third most expensive goalkeeper in history.

He’s also established himself as England’s number one and continues to be a one of Everton’s most consistent players even when in poor form, with the 28-year-old likely to be number one once again going into the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.