Millwall have signed Jayson Molumby on a season-long loan deal from Brighton.

Molumby, 19, is an Under 20 Ireland international and was voted the fourth best player in this summer’s European Championships in France.

The central midfielder joined Brighton in 2015 from Railway Athletic and has since made two senior appearances - both in the EFL Cup.

Millwall manager Neil Harris said he only became aware of the midfielder after Malomby expressed his desire to play for the Lions.

“Jayson was asked himself where he thought his immediate future lied a few weeks ago, and his suggestion to Brighton was Millwall, because of the way he plays,” Harris told the club’s official website.

“That was very interesting and without any prompting from us at all. He sees himself fitting the bill, and his character when I’ve spoken to him shows him as a passionate young man, who wants to play. We’re very excited to work with Jayson.

“He had an exceptional summer at the Toulon Tournament with Ireland, and he’s got the potential to be a good all-round midfield player. We don’t take many loans from Premier League clubs – especially young ones – firstly because they’re not always the right character we want to take, and secondly because we have to be mindful of what we’ve got in our own club.”

The youngster will compete with Ben Thompson, Ryan Leonard and fellow Irishman Shaun Williams.

“Within our setup at the moment, I believe we have room for a central midfield player of Jayson’s qualities. We also have some cracking young boys in the U23s and U18s who at the moment aren’t quite ready to step in, so it gives them a chance to further develop,” Harris added.

It’s telling of his character that he could have stayed at Brighton this season, trained with the first team and maybe got a game, but he wanted to step out and try to play regularly at Championship level.

“He had opportunities to go the division below and wear the number eight shirt, but he wanted to come here and test himself and compete with the players we’ve got.

“They are the characteristics you want when you bring in players from the level above. I’ve told Jayson that he comes with the right pedigree, passion and we’re giving him the platform to develop. It’s down to him and down to us to make it work.”