The path to first-team football has been laid out for one Sunderland star returning from injury.
Sunderland’s current injury list spans far and wide, with several attackers notably absent from Regis Le Bris’ squad at this moment.
Matters have been made more difficult with the recent departure of Aaron Connolly to Millwall, leaving options slim in the final third.
Notably, both Tommy Watson and Romaine Mundle have continued their spell on the sidelines at Sunderland, whilst Ian Poveda’s troubles with his fitness appear to be throwing up curveballs every other week.
Another name on the long list of absentees is Sunderland summer signing Ahmed Abdullahi, who is yet to notch a single first-team appearance since his arrival. However, things are looking up for the 20-year-old Nigerian, with Le Bris having a clear plan laid out for the yet-to-be-seen striker.
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Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris outlines future plans for Ahmed Abdullahi ahead of injury return
Sunderland boss Le Bris will be keen to bolster his attacking options with the return of some key players, and one that looks to be nearing a return is attacker Abdullahi.
The Nigerian arrived with an injury and, as a result, is yet to be utilised for Sunderland. However, Le Bris has thought up a plan to slowly implement the youngster into first-team football, and that will start with a run with the U21’s.
Per The Northern Echo, Le Bris said: “It’s difficult because he [Abdullahi] had surgery and so it is a little bit different to just a muscle injury.
“But he has now trained fully for two weeks and so he should have some game time with the U21s soon. We’ll see him in a game and this is important, because it’s not always easy to assess what you can expect from a young player just from training.
“It is different to Salis [Abdul Samed], for example, who has a lot of experience. But he showed good qualities, for sure. He’s a good striker with a high level of physicality, he is strong and he looks like a good finisher.
“Now it is a question of playing, we’ll see him in the U21s and then we can understand how quickly he will be able to connect with us.”
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Black Cats fans must be patient with Ahmed Abdullahi amid injury return
Sunderland’s success with bringing in top prospects and getting the very best out of them has certainly been on top form recently, as seen by the abilities of the likes of Jobe Bellingham, and more recently, Adil Aouchiche.
Whilst many will be eagerly waiting for the introduction of Abdullahi, who was described as ‘quick and strong’ by Le Bris, but the French boss also suggested that ‘he will need time to develop’.
Coming back from injury can be difficult for any player, but to do so at such a young age, and coming into a completely new league will certainly be a challenge for Abdullahi, and one that warrants plenty of patience, both from Le Bris and Sunderland fans.