Jenson Seelt has taken to Instagram to update fans on his fresh injury ahead of Sunderland’s meeting with QPR.
Sunderland were already facing injury problems in defence, with Dan Ballard joining Niall Huggins, Dennis Cirkin and Aji Alese on the sidelines last weekend, while Luke O’Nien is set to serve the second game of his two-match suspension.
Just as supporters thought that things couldn’t get any worse, it emerged this week that Sunderland were now facing a huge selection dilemma, with Jenson Seelt the latest casualty.
It was unclear what the problem with the Dutchman was or how long he was facing out, but he has now taken to Instagram to explain.
Seelt wrote: “I’m gutted to share the news that I suffered a knee injury during the game against Southampton. This has taken me by surprise and i will be out for a long period of time.
“For now, I need to focus on my recovery and do everything in my power to come back better & stronger than ever. In all difficulties during life there are lessons and things to turn into positivity.”
Seelt admitted that he would be out of action for a ‘long period’, while journalist Graham Falk claimed that there is belief at the club that it could be an ACL injury.
According to reports, players can be sidelined for between six to nine months with these types of injuries, though it depends how serious it is once he undergoes scans on his knee.
What does this mean for Sunderland?
Seelt’s absence is an immediate concern, as it means we have no fit centre-backs available for this weekend’s clash against QPR. While we are currently unaware of the extend of Ballard’s injury, we could be left with only Luke O’Nien for upcoming fixtures.
With all our centre-backs now out, it is baffling that we decided to play out the second half of the campaign with only three options in the middle of defence.
Nectarios Triantis was far from ready to make that step up, but to leave us with only one back-up option now seems crazy. Though I suppose we endured some pretty bad luck when Aji Alese was sidelined for a second time too.
Seelt could potentially be in the treatment room for the rest of the year now and that is a huge concern for the remainder of the campaign, while it will likely affect our transfer business in the summer too.
With Ballard likely to attract interest from the Premier League, we could be forced to bring in a number of new defenders.