Régis Le Bris confirms major Sunderland injury setback ahead of Blackburn Rovers trip

Régis Le Bris has confirmed that Dan Ballard is set to miss Sunderland’s festive fixtures.

Ballard was substituted in the latter stages of the 2-1 win over Norwich City with a muscle problem, and has been ruled out of the trip to face Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park on Boxing Day. The 25-year-old has not suffered a major injury but will miss a number of fixtures in the hectic festive period.

“He won't be available on Thursday,” Le Bris confirmed.

“It's difficult to say how long he will be out exactly, probably two weeks at least. Maybe a little bit more.”

Le Bris said that there were no new injuries, meaning Trai Hume is likely to return to the starting XI with Luke O’Nien moving infield. Ian Poveda could be in line for his first minutes since returning from injury after being named on the bench over the weekend.