Sunderland Boss Confirms Injury Blow

Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris has confirmed that defender Aji Alese is set to miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken leg.

The 24-year-old has suffered his fair share of injury problems this season. Having started the first three games of the campaign, he was ruled out at the end of August with an ankle injury. This saw the former England youth international miss a large chunk of action before returning in November.

Alese had been in and out of the team since and was often utilised as a left-back. However, disaster struck in the FA Cup third round defeat against Stoke City earlier this month when he was stretchered off shortly before the hour mark.

Le Bris Confirms The Worst

Details of the severity of Alese’s injury had been scarce over the past couple of weeks, although Le Bris has now delivered an update. Speaking ahead of this weekend’s clash with bottom-of-the-table Plymouth Argyle, the Frenchman said:

“He (Alese) will miss the remainder of the season. We will see him again in pre-season. He has a broken leg. There was also a hand injury, but that bone is not broken. Both needed surgery.”

This is undoubtedly a blow for the Black Cats, who had previously been light on defensive options. Those seem to have eased though, with centre-back Jenson Seelt set to return to action.

The Dutchman is yet to feature this season after suffering a cruciate ligament injury last March, but came out unscathed from an appearance with the under-21 side last night. Le Bris did state that he will not rush the 21-year-old back though, adding:

“Jenson will need some weeks more before he is ready and at his best level.”

Writer’s View

News of Alese’s long-term absence will come as a major disappointment to the head coach, who is hoping to steer Sunderland back to the Premier League for the first time since 2017. He was downbeat in the immediate aftermath of the injury, admitting his concern at the lack of cover. However, it seems those fears have alleviated and he seems to have ample options. This will prove imperative as the Black Cats look to keep the heat on those sat in the automatic promotion places.

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