Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony has rallied praise for 20-year-old striker Ricky-Jade Jones, who “has all the attributes of a typical Peterborough United centre forward”.
The young Englishman has made 107 appearances and scored 15 goals since signing his first professional deal at London Road in 2019 after progressing through the youth ranks – his first goal for the club coming against County rivals Cambridge United.
A consistent run in the first team has been hard to come by for the youngster with the club’s striker ranks boasting Ivan Toney and Johnson Clarke-Harris over the years.
Despite this, club chairman MacAnthony has shown faith in the forward, calling for his place in the first team while hinting that the club could potentially make a future profit on the 20-year-old.
On his own Hard Truth podcast, The Posh chairman said [quotes via the Peterborough Telegraph]:
“I said a few weeks back that I’d like to see Ricky have a run out as a central striker.
“I just felt with his pace he would cause havoc. I fancied he would force red cards as well as score goals.
“I know he has his doubters and moaners, but to me, he has the attributes of a typical Peterborough United centre-forward.
“There is value for the club in having a 20-21-year-old greyhound at number nine who also scores goals.
“We’ve sold some in the past, like Ivan Toney, and when that happens it sorts your budget out for a year.
“We’ve gone away from selling strikers in recent seasons and sold midfielders or defenders.
“In the past we’ve done well out of having strikers for a couple of seasons and then moving them on.
“For now I’m just pleased for Ricky as he’s been brilliant lately.”
Peterborough have a long history of developing strikers for large profits – with Ivan Toney, Dwight Gayle and Britt Assombalonga being moved on for vast financial net profits during MacAnthony’s tenure.
The Cambridgeshire outfit will welcome League Two side Salford City to London Road in the FA Cup this weekend, a great opportunity for Jones to stake his claim for regular first-team football.
Writer’s View
Ricky-Jade Jones has been around the first team for years, the fact the club have opted against loaning him out over the previous four years shows that he is highly rated throughout the ranks. With strikers such as Clarke-Harris and Toney featuring for the club in recent years, it has always been a monumental task for Jones to truly claim a spot in the starting eleven.
There is no doubt he has a fantastic career ahead of him and, with plenty of room still to grow and develop, Peterborough fans should remain very excited for the best of the young Englishman.
