Régis Le Bris reveals 'tough' Enzo Le Fée conversation and his clear message for Sunderland star

Régis Le Bris has dropped a strong hint that he will continue playing Enzo Le Fée on the left wing for the time being.

Le Fée is expected to return to the squad when Aston Villa visit the Stadium of Light on Sunday afternoon, having missed the 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace due to a minor injury. The 25-year-old is in contention to start out wide, having impressed in the 2-1 win over Brentford in which he scored a penalty.

The Sunderland head coach admits he had a 'tough conversation' with the Frenchman in pre-season, with Granit Xhaka's arrival leading to him dropping out of the starting XI for the opening games of the Premier League campaign. Le Bris insists, however, that there has never been any doubt about how crucial he would be this season.

"Yeah, we don't know [what his long-term position is]," Le Bris said.

"We started the preseason like that, with Noah, Habib and Enzo [in central midfield], and I think we didn't see the best version of Enzo at that minute.

"We spoke together. So when Granit came in the squad, it was obvious that it was the best decision at that minute. We had the conversation, it was tough, but it was clear and honest. And when the opportunity came off the left, because he used to play in this position before, it was easy for him. So sometimes we have one idea, one ideal idea in our mind, and maybe it's not the best on the pitch, because it's just a theory, and the pitch will show something else. And maybe for this first part of the season, his best position, thinking about the connection with Granit, Noah, Rei, maybe it could be on the left side. He probably has a preference, but his main one is to play and for the team to win.

"He knows that we trust him, he's really important for the squad, he's getting better day after day. His leadership and his technical level is really important for the squad, so now it's just a question of the journey, and he will play."

Le Bris believes Le Fée's ability to drift infield can help make Sunderland more unpredictable and improve their chance creation in the weeks ahead.

"I think we have two different sides," Le Bris said.

"One, the right side is a bit more positional, and the left side, with the players we have, probably we can be a bit more versatile, a bit more unpredictable for the opponent, but still predictable for us. And we need different styles of play, so if it's possible to manage the situation like that, being efficient in possession, but efficient out of possession as well, just after the turnovers, for example, it could be a strong point for us, yeah."

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The Sunderland injury latest head of Aston Villa clash

Le Bris has also confirmed that he expects Dan Ballard to return to the squad this weekend. Luke O’Nien is facing a longer absence, though he is still expected to return before the international break in October.

Leo Hjelde, Dennis Cirkin and Aji Alese all remain longer-term absentees.

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