The latest episode of the Sunderland Echo’s The Roar podcast is out now.

Eliezer Mayenda was the hero of the hour as Sunderland returned to winning ways against Sheffield Wednesday on Friday night, with the Spaniard scoring both goals in a 2-1 victory over the Owls at Hillsborough.

The teenager has impressed immensely since emerging as a regular first team option under Regis Le Bris this season, and now has six goals and five assists across 27 Championship outings so far this term.

With that in mind, it is no great shock that Mayenda was the at the centre of plenty of discussion between Sunderland Echo writers James Copley and Phil Smith on the latest edition of The Roar podcast this week. You can watch the full episode here, or listen on Spotify here. Here’s what they had to say on Sunderland’s Steel City match-winner...

Eliezer Mayenda’s difficult start to life in Sunderland

Reflecting on Mayenda’s progress in recent times, SAFC writer James Copley said: “I think he deserves loads of credit for a multitude of different reasons. Obviously, he's come to Sunderland as an 18-year-old - new country, new language, all of that sort of stuff, and it hasn't worked for him. I think he only played eight times in his debut season. He then had that loan move to Hibs. I think he only played a further four times across the league and cup. It was a weird move, that, wasn't it? He was playing for Hibs' under-21s. It was a little bit strange.

“He's come back in the summer, he's kept his head down. By all accounts, his attitude has been fantastic. He started the season, did well, but then he's seen this amazing striker from France come in and he's been rotated in and out.

“He's had tough moments this season as well. The miss against Blackburn Rovers, against Stoke City. It's just a little bit of a reminder, isn't it, that yes, sometimes these moments can be frustrating for young players, but it's best not to write them off because there's talent there. I think we're seeing that. The bond he's got with the crowd at the moment is fantastic as well.

“I was privileged enough to speak to him after the Sheffield Wednesday game and he comes across as a really nice, down-to-earth, genuine guy. His English is actually really, really, really good. That must have improved as well since he first joined the club. A real success story, at the moment.”

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The characteristics that have set Eliezer Mayenda apart at Sunderland

Addressing the early signs of Mayenda’s promise on Wearside, SAFC chief writer Phil Smith added: “I don't think it’s rewriting history now that he’s playing well this season to say that it was obvious there was something there last year... I remember his [full] debut, I think it was against Huddersfield at home, and he had that one where he burst through on goal and crashed a shot, and the keeper knew nothing about it and it just hit him. But you could see straight away that he was explosive, that he had a really, really powerful shot. There was definitely something there.

“I'll never be able to get my head around why he went to Hibs, to be honest, in the sense that a few days earlier, we'd spoken to Michael Beale and he said, ‘Oh no, it's best Mayenda just staying in-house, adjusting to the language, adjusting to the playing style’ - basically what Sunderland have done with Aleksic this year. And then all of a sudden he was off to Hibs. It felt strange and it didn't really work out.

“But the one thing that anyone in football will always tell you is that it's not always as simple as ‘If you play well, a loan is a good move, and if you don't play or play badly, a loan is a bad move’. Sometimes you can just learn from that maturity from being away, of having to be on your own two feet, really. So maybe that's what's happened with Mayenda.

“But I think the thing you've alluded to there, which I think probably is the main takeaway, obviously, he's got great natural ability and natural attributes. It’s obviously, though, his attitude that's made all the difference, as you say, the way he's been able to learn the language. The reason he started the season was because he did what Le Bris asked of him. He completely grabbed what he wanted to be on the pitch, when he wanted to press, what movements he wanted from him. That was why he had that opportunity. And that is why he kind of jumped to the head of the pack of those kind of young players at the club. So, you know, it's a really, really nice blend... I think we are watching the emergence of a really, really strong player for Sunderland and hopefully over a long period of time.”

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