Sunderland duo make goalscoring return to competitive football after Régis Le Bris praise
Sunderland U21s were narrowly beaten in a seven-goal thriller on Sunday afternoon
Adil Aouchiche and Abdoullah Ba pressed their claims to return to the first-team fold by scoring in Sunderland U21s’ narrow defeat to Everton on Sunday.
The pair completed 90 minutes in a seven-goal thriller at Finch Farm, with a last-gasp goal securing a 4-3 win for Everton. Aouchiche and Ba have been left out of the last four first team squads, with the pair both coming close to leaving the club in the final stages of the summer transfer window.
Head coach Regis Le Bris has since insisted that he is prepared to welcome both back into the fold if they earn the right on the training pitch. Their goalscoring return in red-and-white shirts came days after Le Bris said he had been pleased with their response since rejoining their team mates in training - though they weren’t included in the squad for the 1-0 win over Middlesbrough. Both still seem likely to depart in January but their appearances suggested they still have a chance of forcing their way back.
“We have Adil, Abdoullah, Milan [Aleksic] as well is available,” Le Bris said. “So it's a question of the dynamic, the momentum of the game - so we will see. Adil and Abdoullah are with us until the next transfer window, so they have my trust as players of Sunderland and players who have qualities to play and perform in the game. Because they had the opportunity to leave, they needed to reconnect to the project and I like their behaviour in the training sessions this week,” he added.
Milan Aleksic made his first appearance of any kind for Sunderland in the game, playing an hour before being replaced by Harrison Jones. Tommy Watson was again on the scoresheet as he continues to push for first-team inclusion. Graeme Murty’s side are back in action next Monday night, away at Fulham.
Aouchiche and Ba’s attempts to force their way back into the squad will be made more difficult by the return of Alan Browne, Ian Poveda and Salis Abdul Samed to full fitness in the weeks ahead.