Norwich City have confirmed the signing of young Sunderland midfielder Bali Mumba. The 18-year-old joins Norwich on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee.
Bali Mumba Signs for Norwich City From Sunderland
Bali Mumba is a Canary! 🐤
The England youth international joins from Sunderland on a deal until 2024! 👊
🤜 #MumbaJoins 🤛
— Norwich City FC (@NorwichCityFC) July 27, 2020
Leaving Sunderland
Bali Mumba leaves Sunderland after making ten senior appearances for his boyhood club. He made his debut aged 16 in a 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, coming off the bench for then-club captain John O’Shea.
Mumba started the first three games of the 2018/19 season as Sunderland began life in League One. The arrivals of Luke O’Nien and Max Power pushed the youngster down the pecking order. As a result, he continued to ply his trade in the U23 set-up. In this time, he represented England at U16 and U19 level.
The youngster spent the last half of the season on loan at Northern Premier League side South Shields in an attempt to gain first-team minutes. Whilst the experience was invaluable, the season was cut short due to COVID-19. As a result, he is limited in his exposure to first-team football.
A Massive Opportunity
Joining Norwich is a massive opportunity for Mumba to impress. The East-Anglian side have an impressive record in developing young talent. Full-backs Max Aarons and Jamal Lewis came through the youth ranks at the club and are attracting interest. James Maddison plied his trade at Norwich before joining Leicester City and Todd Cantwell could join a big Premier League club too.
All this is to say, Bali Mumba has joined a club that will allow him to flourish. Norwich’s philosophy is to help young players develop. Mumba spoke about how his new teammates inspire him.
“I’ve watched Max Aarons and Jamal Lewis a lot,” Mumba told Norwich’s official website. “I’ve seen how they’ve progressed through the system and have continued to develop and that’s exactly what I’m hoping to replicate.”
Main Photo
