Sunderland U21s will be without three players for their final against Burnley at the Stadium of Light on Thursday evening

Graeme Murty has revealed Sunderland will be without Finn Geragusian for their Premier League Cup final against Burnley, while also detailing the support his young players have received from Régis Le Bris’ first-team set-up.

The young Black Cats have the chance to end their season with silverware at the Stadium of Light, but they will be missing three notable players for the final. Geragusian has been ruled out through injury, while Sunderland will also be unable to call on Timur Tutierov and Trey Ogunsuyi because of competition rules, with both players having spent time out on loan in the EFL.

Murty admitted Geragusian’s absence is a significant blow after an excellent season that included first-team involvement under Le Bris, but he has also praised the backing given to the academy group by the senior set-up ahead of the game.

“It’s a big blow for him. It’s a blow for us and our team and our selection,” Murty said. “He’s had an outstanding season. He’s done really well, obviously capped off by his appearance for the first team, which is a brilliant achievement for him. It’s a real recognition for him.

“It’s a shame he’s going to miss out, but we’re really hopeful that he can have many, many more experiences because we’re hopefully aligning ourselves as a club and as an academy to sustain long-term excellence. That’s what we want to do. We don’t just want to do things briefly. We want to put systems in place that ensure that we’re going to continue to do and operate at this level all the way through.

“Our players really understand that we’re invested in the long-term nature of the project. It’s not just about here and now. I’ve got players in there that aren’t going to be ready for three or four years. We understand that. They need to understand that and our club remain committed to that.”

Sunderland U21s have enjoyed access to first-team facilities and preparation time around the final, while Murty also believes the chance to rub shoulders with senior players such as Granit Xhaka has helped reinforce the standards required to make the step towards Premier League football.

“It’s a fantastic weekend. We get access to everything that we could possibly want,” Murty explained. “For example, we’ve got the team today to go through our team shape, to go through our structure, to go through the way that we’re going to play, and not all first teams do that. They’ve actually allowed us, our entire group, to make sure we can go and prepare as well as we possibly can.”

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Asked what it means for academy players to rub shoulders with players such as Xhaka, Murty said: “It’s brilliant for them because just by being around them, you see their habits, you see their detail, you see the way they approach everything. Our young players are what people would call talented. They are high-potential players. And sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking that might be enough.

“But these guys see on a daily basis the hard work, the intent, the professional discipline that it requires to actually make that step. We are such a close relationship. We get to see it on a daily basis. So the message that we are giving to the players is getting reinforced by top, top performers in the Premier League.”

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