Sunderland are in action against Watford on Saturday afternoon. But Jobe Bellingham will not be playing.
Sunderland are one of eight teams in action in the Championship on Saturday afternoon, after being knocked out of the FA Cup by Stoke City in January.
Regis Le Bris and his in form side host Watford at the Stadium of Light. Last time out, Sunderland beat Middlesbrough 3-2 at the Riverside to remain in 4th place of the table.
Now just three points separates the Black Cats from Sheffield United in 3rd and Burnley in 2nd, with the Blades playing Portsmouth on Saturday.
Watford are in 12th right now but Tom Cleverley’s side have lost their last three. Against Sunderland though, the Hornets will be buoyed by the absence of Jobe Bellingham.
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Jobe Bellingham misses Sunderland vs Watford through injury
On Saturday morning, there were rumours on social media that Bellingham had suffered an injury in the week and that he was going to miss the game against Watford. Then when the team news came out, those fears were confirmed.
Bellingham was nowhere to be seen and Sunderland Echo say that he’s missing with an ankle injury. Thankfully, it’s not a serious one. The same report adds that Bellingham is ‘expected at this stage to be in contention’ for the game against Luton Town on Wednesday night.
So far this season, the 19-year-old Bellingham has featured 27 times in the Championship, scoring four goals and assisting three more.
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A lot of eyes on Jobe Bellingham right now
Transfer interest in Bellingham is no secret. Before the January transfer window, Borussia Dortmund were being linked with Bellingham, who’s even had loose links to Real Madrid.
More recently though, it was revealed that Arsenal and Manchester United were scouting Bellingham during the win over Middlesbrough, with Chris Rigg being watched as well.
It’s a credit to how much Bellingham has developed since joining Sunderland in 2023 and a testament to the continued good work by Kristjaan Speakman in the transfer market.