Sunderland youngster Ahmed Abdullahi missed out on a late loan move to Ligue 1

Régis Le Bris believes that Ahmed Abdullahi still has a long-term future at Sunderland and hopes that a consistent period of training can help the youngster after an injury-hit first season on Wearside.

Abdullahi has not made a competitive appearance for the club since signing from Belgian side Gent on deadline day last summer, after it was decided surgery was the best option to deal with a pre-existing groin problem. Though the underlying issue was fixed by surgery, Abdullahi suffered a significant setback having initially impressed with a number of goals in the U21 side, and continued to experience some discomfort towards the end of last season.

He was able to feature during Sunderland's pre-season programme and a loan move to join Ligue 1 side Angers was lined up to help him get regular senior minutes this season. Unfortunately the deal was never finalised, with reports in France saying the move was blocked by financial restrictions imposed on the French club. That has left Abdullahi in limbo somewhat for the time being, though Le Bris believes there will be some benefits to the striker getting a period of uninterrupted training.

Sunderland are likely to try and seek a loan move for Abdullahi when the January transfer window opens.

"Sometimes Ahmed trains with us, sometimes with the U21s," Le Bris said.

"Ahmed is in this situation. He struggled a bit after his surgery to recover properly. He had ups and downs. Now it seems a bit better, so I hope he will have this consistency in next weeks. I think so [still has a long-term future here]. He's really young, he's talented. He was unlucky to suffer from this injury and didn't find the the right rhythm. I hope it would be the case in next month and we'll we'll see the best version of Ahmed."

Sunderland's U21s have a busy upcoming fixture list and it's possible that Abdullahi could get some game time in that side.

The Echo has launched a new WhatsApp SAFC channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates directly to your phone. Simply click this link to join our SAFC WhatsApp channel.

What's happening with the other Sunderland players who didn't seal summer exit

While Abdullahi continued to train at least partly with the senior team, a number of other players who weren't able to secure moves in the summer transfer window are currently training separately.

Ian Poveda, Jay Matete, Joe Anderson, Timothee Pembele and Abdoullah Ba were all informed at the start of the summer that they would not be part of Le Bris's plans but were unable to find a new club before the deadline. Le Bris says the situation isn't ideal but that the club will take care of the players until the situation can be resolved in the January transfer window.

"They are still training with a group, because we we need to take care of them.

"But they are not involved in the core of the squad right now, so they are probably waiting for the next transfer window to to find a new opportunity. It's not ideal, to be fair, but football is like that. Sometimes you have the perfect pathway, sometimes it's not the case and you have to manage the situation properly."

Your next Sunderland read: I watched Sunderland's last-gasp signing make his debut - this is what caught my eye