Sunderland have a number of injuries to deal with right now, but it seems two players are right on the road to recovery this week.
To be fair, Sunderland are dealing pretty well with the absences they’ve suffered this season, and Regis Le Bris is getting the best out of the players available to him.
The Sunderland squad is well-balanced right now, and after the win over Swansea, spirits are high around the Stadium of Light.
Still, the return of some of those injured players could be a huge boost to Le Bris and his men ahead of the January transfer window.
Jenson Seelt and Ian Poveda are back in training
As images emerged from Sunderland’s training session on Wednesday morning, eagle-eyed fans will have spotted both Jenson Seelt and Ian Poveda back on the grass training with the team.
Seelt is yet to play this season due to his knee injury and subsequent surgery, but the young centre-half will be a welcome addition to the squad after a fairly impressive first season in England last year.
Meanwhile, Poveda was expected to return in January, but could be slightly ahead of schedule now. The attacker was signed on a free transfer in the summer, but has so far managed just 44 minutes of action across three games this term.
We would assume the Norwich game will come too soon for these two, but the fact they are in the session at all is a very promising sign.
- READ MORE: The staggering amount that Ian Poveda has earned per appearance for Sunderland this season
Regis Le Bris’ squad is getting stronger all the time
The return of the pair highlights the fact the Sunderland squad has far more strength in depth than people may first assume.
Le Bris is blessed with strong defensive options already, and Seelt can only improve that situation when he’s fit and ready.
Poveda is someone Le Bris wants more from when he’s back, too, and as we’ve seen in the past, he can be a really tricky customer when he’s at his best.
With Sunderland already excelling this season, the fact potentially influential players are on their way back, too, will massively boost the Black Cats’ chances of remaining around the top of the table.