Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris has delivered his verdict on the situation surrounding the injured striker

Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris has delivered his verdict on the situation surrounding injured striker Ahmed Abdullahi.

Abdullahi has yet to make his first appearance for Sunderland since signing from Gent on deadline day last year. The 20-year-old underwent surgery to address a pre-existing groin issue, sidelining him for three months.

After returning to training, he made a handful of appearances for the U21s, including a standout performance in which he scored a hat-trick against Wolves. However, he has since been unable to train or play.

Despite the setback, manager Le Bris remains confident in Abdullahi’s recovery, emphasizing that while more time is needed, there are no concerns over a long-term problem. Sunderland continues to take a careful approach to his rehabilitation, ensuring he returns to full fitness before making his long-awaited first-team debut.

“It's a bit different for Ahmed (to Mayenda last season) because he hasn't been on the pitch, he's been injured. Sometimes he's been in the physio room and sometimes on the coach with the coaches,” Le Bris said. “But he hasn't been connected with the project this season. Next season will be a different season, so we will see.

“I try to be connected with the injured players, not every day but every week I try to speak to them and stay in close contact. But at the same time when you are not in the squad, it's more difficult because you don't have the same schedule, you don't live the matchday experience and so on. So it's a little bit more complicated. Ahmed is connected to the team and is a good guy but he hasn't been able to connect on the pitch this season.”

Le Bris has also been boosted in recent weeks by the return to fitness of both Tommy Watson and Romaine Mundle ahead of the Championship run-in.

“It's very important to have specific wingers,” Le Bris added. “We struggled a long part of the season without specific wingers. In our game model, these wingers are very important.

“When you play with other players, Enzo, for example, they can play in that position but they don't have the same qualities to fit this position in one vs one situations. Romaine and Tommy like doing this job and I hope they will grow again in this position.”

What else has Le Bris said about Abdullahi’s injury?

"Ahmed struggled with this injury,” Le Bris said two weeks ago. “The injury is solved now but there have been some ups and downs with the pain. The surgery was fine, successful, but sometimes there was a reaction to the load of the training sessions. So he just needs time. He is not yet ready to train with us, he just needs time. I would like a third striker for sure, but we will wait.”

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