Xhaka has been sidelined for almost a month himself after suffering an ankle injury in January’s win over Crystal Palace, with the Black Cats skipper having been forced to sit out the last five games in all competitions.
He has been able to train fully this week though, and is set to go straight back into Sunderland’s starting line-up for Sunday’s home game with a Fulham side that have won just three of their 13 Premier League away games so far this term.
“Granit has trained more or less fully this week, so he’s available for selection,” said Le Bris, who also confirmed that centre-half Omar Alderete is available to face Fulham. “That won’t be the case for Bertrand (Traore), although he will rejoin the group next week and might be available soon.
“It’s better to play with Granit than without. Whenever you have more options for the starting line-up and the bench, the team is stronger. For Granit, we will have to be progressive and respect the process, but it is good because now we have all of our midfielders available.”
When Xhaka’s injury issue was first confirmed, it was feared Sunderland could collapse in the absence of their talismanic captain. That hasn’t happened, with the Black Cats successfully making it through to the fourth round of the FA Cup without Xhaka in the side, but a tally of just three points from the 12 that were available in the midfielder’s absence in the league highlights his importance.
Sunderland have missed Xhaka, both in terms of his dynamic midfield play and his leadership, with Le Bris happy to acknowledge the 33-year-old’s influence on the rest of the squad.
“It’s part of the journey to be without someone like Granit for a while,” said the Sunderland boss, whose side will be looking to bounce back at the first time of asking after losing their unbeaten home record when they were beaten by Liverpool in their most recent outing at the Stadium of Light. “We have to accept that.
“He was really important for us as a player and as a leader. He helped the young lads in this squad to grow and be competitive. When you remove a leader, the place is a bit empty at the beginning, but it is an opportunity to grow and I think, in this squad, we have many players with the possibility to lead.
“It is probably not at the same level of experience [as Xhaka] because that is impossible. You cannot buy experience, you have to go through these different events. But they have this ability.
“It is not automatic, but I think the lads grew through this experience. Now, if you combine both - more experience and leadership and getting Granit back - we might expect a better level.”
While Xhaka’s return is a major boost for the Black Cats, Reinildo’s absence is a considerable blow.
The left-back suffered a knee problem in the Liverpool loss, and while a series of tests have proved the injury is not as bad as was initially feared, the Mozambique international is set expected to be unavailable for around a month. That should, however, mean he is back in the fray by the time Sunderland head to Newcastle United in the middle of March.
In the meantime, Dennis Cirkin is likely to deputise at left-back, having performed creditably in the position in last weekend’s FA Cup win at the Kassam Stadium.
“Reinildo is the only new player missing,” said Le Bris. “He won’t be available for three or four weeks, so potentially after Brighton, in time for the Newcastle game.
“It’s a knee injury. It was during the game at home against Liverpool. He felt something in his knee, and the first diagnosis was not positive. After that, we had a second diagnosis and that was more positive, but he still needs a short period of rest to be back.”