Sunderland will continue to be without Granit Xhaka and Bertrand Traore for Wednesday's clash at home to Liverpool, but head coach Regis Le Bris is ready to unleash their new star
19:56, 10 Feb 2026
Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris looks on in the dugout ahead of facing Liverpool
Sunderland has two ongoing injury problems ahead of facing Liverpool(Image: 2026 CameraSport)
Liverpool travels to Sunderland on Wednesday night, but the hosts have just two absentees from the squad compared to Arne Slot's current roster headache.
Sunderland hosts Liverpool at the Stadium of Light, and the visitors have five players missing for the Premier League clash. Along with long-term injuries, Dominik Szoboszlai picked up a straight red card against Manchester City on Sunday and will be suspended.
While Joe Gomez could return to the side, Liverpool has an injury crisis in defense, and Sunderland hasn't lost at home this season. Still, Sunderland will face Liverpool without captain Granit Xhaka, and Bertrand Traore is also out.
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Sunderland is enjoying a strong first season back in the Premier League, sitting ninth in the standings, just three points behind Liverpool. Arsenal beat Sunderland 3-0 on Saturday, but the newly-promoted side has no new injury problems.
Xhaka has been out for roughly three weeks, but hopes to return in the near future. Traore, who once featured in a 7-2 win for Aston Villa against Liverpool, has been sidelined for close to one month.
Traore played at the Africa Cup of Nations with Burkina Faso, but has been injured since participating in the tournament in Morocco. Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris spoke about Traore's status ahead of Wednesday's game.
Sunderland duo Bertrand Traore and Granit Xhaka during a 3-2 win over Bournemouth
Sunderland will be without Bertrand Traore and Granit Xhaka on Wednesday(Image: 2025 CameraSport)
"He's in the same dynamic, similar to Granit - almost three weeks, something like that," Le Bris said. "So it's always symptom-driven, but they are both in a good place.
"So hopefully we'll have good news in a few weeks. Bertrand suffered an important knee injury and played with his national team in the second half, I think.
"I don't remember the opponent, and when he came back here in Sunderland, the diagnosis was that you need to rest and you need to take care of your knee if you want to have a stable knee for the end of the season and for his career as well. So we didn't rush the process, and we took care of him just to make sure that he's ready to play.”
Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch shakes hands with Sunderland's Lutsharel Geertruida earlier this season
Liverpool drew 1-1 against Sunderland at home earlier this season(Image: Getty Images)
However, Noah Sadiki was withdrawn during the second half of the 3-0 defeat to Arsenal with an injury concern, but Le Bris said that he will be "good" to face Liverpool. New $20 million signing Nilson Angulo made his debut off the bench against Arsenal.
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"Nilson is ready to play. He has trained with us and played a lot of football this year at a good level," Le Bris said of the new signing.
Le Bris expects a tough battle against Liverpool and believes that, despite recent results, the Premier League champions have improved. "I think they are getting better and they are strong," Le Bris said.
"They have a few injuries, but their manager is really good. They are Liverpool and it's a must-win for them once again, so it will be a tough challenge. So it's an exciting challenge for us, but a tough one."