Regis Le Bris will be forced into changes for the upcoming away clash against Preston North End.
Sunderland will be expecting to come away from Deepdale on Wednesday evening with all three points as they are set to face off against an out-of-form Preston North End outfit, who have not won in their previous four games.
The Black Cats will be hoping for a repeat in regards to their defensive showing, which yet again saw Chris Mepham shine at the back, whilst Dennis Cirkin was dependable as ever on the left side of the back-four.
However, there were some attacking concerns which saw Wilson Isidor uncharacteristically struggle when leading the line, whilst Aaron Connolly also didn’t provide much more of an impact for the 20 minutes that he came off-the bench for.
The main talking point from the game was the red card handed to Jobe Bellingham, who as a result will be absent from the game.
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Sunderland absentees ahead of Preston North End clash
In the last two games against Oxford United and QPR, Simon Moore has started in-between the sticks in place of Anthony Patterson due to the shot-stopper’s injury, and that is set to continue against Preston.
Eliezer Mayenda returned last week after being included on the bench and will be available yet again.
Dan Ballard has been sidelined for several weeks, however he is set to return to action, as will Chris Rigg, whose ‘mesmerising’ efforts were sorely missed in the 0-0 draw against QPR.
Le Bris remains without the longer-term absentees Jenson Seelt, Niall Huggins, Aji Alese, Ian Poveda, Salis Abdul Samed, and Ahmed Abdullahi.
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Sunderland predicted line up to face Preston North End
Moore is likely to get the nod to start yet again in net for Sunderland, whilst Le Bris will line up with a carbon-copy backline consisting of Trai Hume, Chris Mepham, Luke O’Nien and Dennis Cirkin. Despite Ballard’s return, he is unlikely to be thrown straight into a start.
As for the midfield, Bellingham’s absence will see Alan Browne, Dan Neil and Rigg will back out the centre-of-the-park, with the latter coming in after his injury.
The attack will remain unchanged, consisting of Patrick Roberts, Romaine Mundle and Isidor through the middle. The French forward was not in his best form against QPR and is facing competition from returnee Mayenda, however he will likely retain his spot.
Here is how they could line up…
Simon Moore (GK), Trai Hume, Chris Mepham , Luke O’Nien, Dennis Cirkin, Alan Browne, Dan Neil, Chris Rigg, Patrick Roberts, Romaine Mundle, Wilson Isidor