'Interesting': Regis Le Bris' Adil Aouchiche view ahead of Sunderland’s pre-season fixtures

New Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris says it will be interesting to see how Adil Aouchiche’s game has evolved over the last year.

The 21-year-old playmaker made 14 senior appearances for French side Lorient under Le Bris during the 2022/23, before signing for Sunderland last summer.

Aouchiche featured 28 times in the Championship during his first season on Wearside, including 10 starts, after signing a deal until 2028 at the Stadium of Light.

Aouchiche is set to be involved against either South Shields or Gateshead on Saturday, July 13, with Sunderland’s squad set to be split into two teams consisting of first-team and under-21s players for the friendly fixtures.

When asked about Aouchiche in his first press conference as Sunderland boss last week, Le Bris said: "I haven't had deep conversations with any of the players at the moment. I will have these types of conversations at the end of the week and next week.

"Adil, like me, we've had many experiences since our work together at Lorient. It'll be very interesting to see him in the next game and try to understand how he has evolved during this period. We'll see if he can be an interesting player for the team."

Following their fixtures against South Shields and Gateshead, Sunderland’s squad will fly to Alicante for a week-long training camp in Spain. The Black Cats will play two friendly matches overseas against Nottingham Forest and second-tier Spanish side CD Eldense.