Sunderland are considering a bid for Mao Hosoya in the January transfer window.
The Black Cats are desperate to solve their attacking woes, despite signing four strikers in the summer.
Luis Hemir, Nazariy Rusyn, Eliezer Mayenda and Mason Burstow are all yet to score since arriving at Sunderland, with the club actually opting to play without a No.9 all together in the three games since Tony Mowbray was sacked.
There have been questions raised as to whether Sunderland would dig deep to bring in a goalscoring striker next month as they look to push for the play-offs, and it now looks like they could be prepared to add yet another option to the frontline.
According to Sunderland Nation, the Black Cats are interested in signing Kashiwa Reysol’s Mao Hosoya.
The Japan international netted 13 goals in 34 games in the J1 League this season, and could potentially be on his way out ahead of his contract expiry next year.
Who is Mao Hosoya?
Mao Hosoya came up through the academy ranks at Kashiwa Reysol, before he was registered as a first-team player at only 17 years old.
The youngster made his J.League debut in March 2019, before scoring his first senior goal four months later.
Hosoya enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in 2022, netting eight goals and providing four assists, earning himself the 2022 J.League Best Young Player award.
After previously bagging eight goals in 16 games for the U21s, his form for Kashiwa Reysol also earned him his first call-up to the Japan national team last summer, before netting his first goal for his country in a World Cup qualifier against Syria just last month.
Hosoya’s goal tally increased in the 2023 campaign, netting 14 goals as he became a key player for Kashiwa Reysol. The 22-year-old’s goals claimed winners on three occasions and helped his side avoid relegation by four points.
Is Mao Hosoya the answer?
Mao Hosoya is clearly a very talented player and seems to be scoring goals for fun in Japan now.
Japanese football seems to have dramatically grown in recent years and has developed some huge stars, with the likes of Kaoru Mitoma, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Takefusa Kubo and Daichi Kamada all earning themselves moves to Europe.
Signing Hosoya is certainly the kind of transfer Brighton would make, and we do seem to be looking to replicate their model. But is it what we need right now?
Hosoya could be a very solid signing for the future, but there is no guarantee that he would settle into life in the Championship straight away. There is no guarantee that he could replicate his form into one of the most physical leagues on the continent.
That was also the case with our four other strikers, and look how that panned out. Sunderland need to learn from the summer’s mistakes – what is the point in signing another forward who could end up in the same situation as the others? We need a player who is proven to score goals in the Championship, and if that isn’t happening, then I would rather stick with what we have got.