Sunderland youngster relishing 'big club' opportunity after extending National League loan

Sunderland loanee Zak Johnson says he is 'happy' to have extended his loan with 'big club' Hartlepool United. Johnson, who has risen through the ranks at the Academy of Light, will remain at North East neighbours Hartlepool until the New Year.

The England youth international has impressed manager John Askey during his initial month-long deal after featuring for Tony Mowbray during the Black Cats' summer pre-season programme.

The 19-year-old joined Pools in September and made his debut for the club in the 2-0 home defeat to Solihull Moors, then featuring in six of the seven games he was available for after completing the move from Wearside.

Manager Askey then extended Johnson's stay at Pools until January with the defender establishing himself as one of Hartlepool United's main men in defence as the club competes in the National League

"I’m really happy to extend it until January, I think these first few games have been a real step forward in my development and I think in every game I’m learning and developing new things,” Johnson said to the Hartlepool Mail after agreeing his new loan deal at the Suit Direct Stadium.

"I’m really enjoying my time with the lads, they’ve made me feel really welcome and I’m really happy to continue that journey with them until January and see where things end up.

"We’ve got to get more points, that’s the main thing,” he added. "I can talk about myself and say I want to develop and I want to improve and get game time, but the most important thing is points.

"I’ve come to Hartlepool, it’s a big club, and we have high expectations and the most important thing is getting them three points and building from there.”

Johnson captained England’s under-18s in the summer and has made a small number of appearances for Sunderland’s first-team in the EFL Trophy and the Carabao Cup in recent seasons.

The teenager, though, is relishing the opportunity to gain regular first-team minutes with Hartlepool United as he looks to continue his development.

"It’s the thing I’ve enjoyed the most in terms of being able to go into a game and understanding there’s a real significance to it for the fans, for yourself and for the manager and the team around you,” Johnson told The Mail.

"There’s a real importance to that because, ultimately, development football is just about how you can develop from each game and learn new things – win, lose or draw it’s about moving onto the next one, whereas here there’s an importance to every game and that puts a pressure on every game which I’m really privileged to have to handle.

“I didn’t know what to expect going in because I’ve never been outside of Sunderland before,” Johnson admitted.

"I think I’ve got a real buzz off coming out and playing in front of the fans, [I know results aren’t what we wanted] but for me personally, I feel like it’s a real step forward into understanding men’s football and I think that knock-back of defeat is only motivation for us to try and push on. So straight away getting brought into that is something I’ve enjoyed.”