Jayson Molumby: Introducing Brighton and Ireland's Potential Midfield Star

When new Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny named his first squad for the upcoming Nations League matches against Bulgaria and Finland, he sprung a couple of surprises.

The biggest came with the inclusion of Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Jayson Molumby. You might not have heard of him before, but if Molumby lives up to his potential then his could be a name which dominates Irish football for years to come.

Brighton sent some serious talents on loan to the Championship last season. Ben White at Leeds United garnered most of the attention while down the M1 at Pride Park, centre back Matt Clarke was busy picking up Derby County's Player of the Season Award.

Molumby went under the radar somewhat in comparison. He spent 2019-20 at Millwall, where he was a major factor in the Lions' surprise challenge for a top six spot. It is the form he showed in 40 appearances across all competitions at The Den which has seen him called up to the senior Ireland squad for the first time.

It has not been an easy journey to reach this point for Molumby. Brighton signed him in 2015 as a 16-year-old from Railway Athletic, a youth club in County Waterford. He made his senior debut on 22 August 2017 in the Seagulls' 1-0 EFL Cup second round win over Barnet at the Amex, playing a part in the only goal of the game scored by fellow youth team player James Tilley. Molumby then played the full 120 minutes as Brighton were eliminated in the third round against Bournemouth, losing 1-0 in extra time at the Vitality Stadium.

His performances in both those matches having just turned 18 highlighted his potential and big things were expected of Molumby, even under a manager in Chris Hughton who was notoriously reluctant to put his trust in young players in the bread and butter of league football.

Unfortunately for Molumby, an injury nightmare was just around the corner that would end up costing him 15 months of his fledgling career.

The trouble began when Molumby suffered a knee injury which ruled him out for six months. Operating on the problem was an option, but that would have put him on the sidelines for even longer. With the experts advising that there was a good chance Molumby's body would heal itself without surgery due to his youth, the decision was taken not put him through an operation.

Molumby returned, passed fitness test after fitness test and was cleared to resume full training. Within three sessions it became very clear that all was not well. Molumby's kneecap was not stable enough and it ended up giving way, causing a dislocation. The only way to fix the problem was to have reconstructive surgery to strengthen and repair the knee ligament, which meant another nine months out of action.

It was a long road back. Molumby returned to full fitness in February 2019, playing his first 45 minutes for Brighton's development squad against Manchester City. Such is the regard in which the Seagulls hold him that Hughton named him on the bench the very next day for the first team's FA Cup fifth round clash with Derby County at the Amex.

By the time last summer's Toulon tournament came around, Molumby was back to somewhere approaching his best - so much so that he was voted the fourth best player at the competition ahead of some big names from France, Brazil, Portugal and England as Ireland reached the semi finals.

The only three players considered better? Brazil’s Douglas Luiz, a midfielder who Manchester City forked out £10m for. Luiz’s teammate Lyanco, a defender who Torino paid £6m for and who has attracted the interest of Manchester United, Juventus and Atletico Madrid among others. And Japan’s Ao Tanaka. Not bad company to be in.

There has been no looking back for Molumby since then. His season at Millwall has shown that both his talent and his knee can stand up the scrutiny of the Championship. He signed a new three-year contract with Brighton in March, a sign that the Seagulls see him very much as part of their future plans and he is now targeting a spot in Graham Potter's first team for 2020/21.

The good news for Molumby is that he seems perfectly suited to the way Potter wants his side to play. He is comfortable on the ball - an absolute necessity in a possession based team - and he is already a master at the art of pressing. Speaking to the South London Press, Millwall boss Gary Rowett credited the Lions' 1-0 win over Brentford in December to Molumby's energy and press.

“The goal at Brentford typified Jayson’s spirit," Rowett said. "He closes one player down, then another and then the goalkeeper – it ends up with Aiden O’Brien following up and scoring. That is what he is about. He is a feisty player and he’s tough. You’ve seen in some games where he has almost taken us pressing the opposition into his own hands.”

Molumby is certainly committed. Not only does he possess finesse and technical ability, but he also has an appreciation of the dirty side of the game as shown by his nine yellow cards last season. That blood-and-thunder approach was one reason why the Millwall faithful took to him.

He has has shown his leadership skills by captaining Ireland at every level up to Under 21s. Under 19s manager Tom Mohan talked about Molumby’s qualities as a battling leader in an interview with The Irish Sun when the midfielder was first being mooted for a senior call up back in April.

“He would have led us on many a crusade with both the Under 17s and Under 19s. The bigger the battle, the bigger the name or the bigger the country we were up against, the more he relished it. He wants to be challenged, he’s a real warrior-type midfielder. He’s a real competitor who likes to roll up his sleeves and lead his side into battle.”

Listen to anyone who has worked with Molumby and you will realise that he has an exemplary attitude and the drive needed to make it to the top. He has already said that if regular first team football looks unlikely at Brighton in 2020/21, then he will seek a loan move back to Championship for the good of his long term development. He will not be short of suitors given the success he helped bring to Millwall.

But a loan move may not be necessary. Molumby looks well poised to break through at the Amex, especially as Potter seemed to be phasing out Dale Stephens post-lockdown. Yves Bissouma did an excellent job in taking on the holding midfield role and in Potter's 4-2-2-2, there is room for two deeper lying central players. The prospect of pairing Bissouma and Molumby as a dynamic, young, and technically gifted duo in the midfield engine room is an exciting one.

Molumby has been compared to Roy Keane and for an Irish midfielder, praise does not come much higher than that. If he can be half the player that Keane was, then Brighton and Ireland have a talent on their hands. Watch this space.