Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris has given an update over one major injury sustained in the clash vs Stoke City.
The Black Cats have found themselves out of the FA Cup after a 2-1 defeat against Stoke City.
The silver lining of the game saw Sunderland summer signing Milan Aleksic bag his first goal in red & white, whilst academy duo Harrison Jones and Trey Ogunsuyi were both utilised by Regis Le Bris, although the latter was only handed a small cameo at the end of the game.
However, there were plenty of negatives on top of the result, including the two goals conceded showing complacency from Sunderland’s most experienced figures in the side.
As well as this, Le Bris was also handed an injury blow in the game as Aji Alese was stretchered off after what looked like a severe knock to be handed. The French boss has now issued an update on the defender and the severity of his injury.
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Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris offers sympathy to Aji Alese following injury that ‘looks serious’
59 minutes into the clash, Sunderland left-back Alese suffered an injury that saw him stretchered off and replaced by Zac Johnson.
The Black Cats defender already has quite the colourful injury record, and has been very unlucky so far in his Sunderland career with set-backs, with the most recent looking ‘serous’, according to Le Bris.
Per Sunderland Echo, Sunderland boss Le Bris gave an update on Alese and the severity of his injury picked up in the Stoke City defeat, to which he said: “It looks serious.
“It’s always a shame for a player, for a team-mate, because a serious injury for their health and their career is still difficult. It’s difficult for him especially, it’s difficult for the group because it’s important for us.
“At the same time, we’ll have good support for him for the next weeks.”
Kristjaan Speakman will need to plug Aji Alese gap in January transfer window
Ultimately, the loss of Alese to injury is certainly a blow for Le Bris in terms of his depth in defence.
The 23-year-old defender had the ability to slot in at both centre-half and left-back, and his untimely injury ultimately means that the gap will need to be plugged with recruitment.
The most likely avenue for Kristjaan Speakman to explore in the January transfer window will likely be the Premier League loan market, which will help Sunderland plug the gap in the short term and at a small financial risk.
As Sunderland are well and truly in the promotion race, they must ensure that they are covered on all grounds, and with Alese’s injury causing concerns over depth, it must now be one of Speakman’s priorities to be proactive and sign a short term replacement.