One Sunderland youngster is surely out of Regis Le Bris’ plans after his recent U21 performance.
The Black Cats’ attacking options at this moment are looking rather slim following the injury sustained by Romaine Mundle.
The silver lining to the absence of the 21-year-old winger, who has bagged four goals so far in the 2024/25 Championship season, is the permanent introduction of Tommy Watson, who was one of Sunderland’s bright sparks in the narrow 1-0 defeat on the road against Sheffield United.
Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris will be relieved that Watson managed to live up to the billing as wide options behind him look incredibly scarce, and it would seriously deplete his sides’ attacking capabilities up top.
One Black Cats man who certainly isn’t in with a potential first-team spot is Abdoullah Ba after his recent showing with the U21s.
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Abdoullah Ba shows that he isn’t first team ready in Sunderland U21 clash with Man City
Frenchman Ba was part of the Sunderland U21 side that narrowly lost 3-2 to Man City’s U21 side, a game that saw Trey Ogunsuyi and Harrison Jones find the back of the net for Graeme Mury’s side.
Whilst it was a respectable showing for the U21s, Ba was certainly not on the end of that after he ‘offered very little in an attacking sense’, and ‘hardly had a touch in the first-half’, per Sunderland Echo.
There was also a lack of ‘enthusiasm’ in his performance, and he didn’t look like a player willing to capitalise on the current lack of attacking options for Le Bris by attempting to break into the first-team.
Abdoullah Ba needs January loan to refind feet
It is clear that any ability that Ba holds is just being drained out due to the fact that he is simply uninterested in playing at U21 level, and as a result, his potential and development will be getting hindered.
It may be a cry for help from Ba that he wants to continue his development elsewhere perhaps, and this should be sanctioned with a January loan move for the youngster.
There is still some chance of reviving his Black Cats career after showing promise during the 2023/24 Championship season, notching seven goal contributions in 39 appearances, and that should be enough for him to still be able to stake a claim to get back in the side after a successful loan spell away from the club.