Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris has issued a team news update

Romaine Mundle and Leo Hjelde will make their Sunderland comebacks at the Stadium of Light on Thursday evening.

Mundle and Hjelde will both play 45 minutes as the U21s face Sporting Lisbon in the Premier League International Cup at 7pm. It will be the first competitive football either has played since the win over Sheffield United in the play-off final at Wembley. Hjelde underwent surgery on both achilles in the aftermath of that game, having played through the pain barrier through the play-offs.

Mundle, meanwhile, suffered a recurrence of a hamstring injury in pre-season that also required surgery. Dennis Cirkin, who has two U21 appearances under his belt in recent weeks, will step up his own comeback by playing 90 minutes against the Portuguese side.

None of the trio will be in contention to face Fulham on Saturday.

“90 minutes for Dennis tonight and 45 for Leo and Romaine, so that’s good news for them,” Régis Le Bris said.

“Fulham is too soon for all of them.”

Le Bris also confirmed that Reinildo is available for Saturday’s game despite not going on international duty with Mozambique: “He felt discomfort in a hamstring but it isn't serious. He had a previous injury a few years ago so it's more related to that than a new one. He will be fine [for Saturday].”

Omar Alderete will return to the squad after recovering from a concussion.

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Régis Le Bris previews Fulham test

While Fulham have had a mixed start to the Premier League campaign, Le Bris has warned that Sunderland face a stern test against a side particularly strong on home turf.

“They are really efficient at home, they can create chances in different ways, they are really proactive, good side, good players, good experience from the coaching staff, so really efficient,” Le Bris said.

“I don't really understand why they struggle away but we won't play away so it's not the main topic for this game. Another tough challenge, we know that in this Premier League we can't play an easy game, it doesn't exist and this one will be another tough one.”