Sunderland’s longer-term absentees are making progress in their recovery from injury
Dennis Cirkin is edging closer to his Sunderland comeback after Régis Le Bris confirmed the left back had resumed training with the club’s U21 squad.
Cirkin missed pre-season having continued to suffer discomfort in the wrist that sidelined him for a protracted period last season. Having also experienced some discomfort with a knee issue, Sunderland gave him an extended period of rest in the hope that he could return fully fit and make an impact in the rest of the club’s Premier League survival bid.
Having been pictured back on the Academy of Light pitches over the international break, Le Bris has confirmed that Cirkin is edging closer to a return. Aji Alese remains sidelined through injury, while Leo Hjelde is also closing in on a return having undergone surgery on both of his achilles over the summer. Both Hjelde and Cirkin will need time to get up to speed having missed the whole of the pre-season programme. Their return will bring very welcome depth to the defensive ranks when AFCON begins, with Reinildo and Arthur Masuaku both heading to Morocco to represent their respective nations.
"Aji is not on the pitch right now," Le Bris said.
"Leo is really close, and so he should be available to train with the team in two or three weeks I think. Dennis has been back training with the U21s after a long period of rest, so we're hoping that he will be close to the squad in one or two weeks. With Habib, we are thinking the beginning of December or maybe the middle.”
Romaine Mundle was also pictured back on the Academy of Light training pitches during the international break, with Le Bris previously explaining that hoped the winger would be back in contention towards the end of this month.
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Régis Le Bris issues Noah Sadiki and Omar Alderete update
Le Bris remains hopeful that both Noah Sadiki and Omar Alderete will be fit to start against Wolves on Saturday afternoon.
The pair both picked up injuries during the international break, with Sadiki returning early from DR Congo’s fixtures due to an ankle sprain. Sadiki will be closely monitored over the next couple of days but the initial signs are positive and Le Bris says it is an issue that the midfielder has managed in the past.
The Black Cats are less certain on Omar Alderete, who has only just returned to Wearside. Alderete was substituted in the latter stages of Paraguay’s 2-0 defeat to South Korea with a muscle complaint, and has since faced a long-haul trip back to Wearside. He will need to be assessed further in the next 24 hours but Le Bris says like Sadiki, the initial signs are positive. Regardless of Saturday’s game, neither appears to be facing a significant lay-off.
“We’re hopeful that both Omar and Noah can start, it’s possible,” Le Bris said.
“For Noah, we checked him yesterday and he seems OK. We’ll see after the training session today and tomorrow but we are positive. At the minute, he seems OK. He had this injury before so he knows how it can evolve and how serious it can be. At the moment he’s positive.
“With Omar, after a 20 hours flight, we’ll see! We’ll check him this afternoon. We had a quick chat with him and he’s positive. Everyone else appears to be OK.”
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