Regis Le Bris will lead Sunderland out for the first time on Saturday.
Sunderland travel to Cardiff City in their first game of the 2024/25 Championship season, and in their first game under Regis Le Bris.
Sunderland appointed Le Bris earlier in the summer, ending four months without a permanent manager in place at the Stadium of Light.
So far this summer, Sunderland have signed four new players, with the likes of Alan Browne expected to debut against Cardiff this weekend.
Fans are unsure of what to expect from Le Bris and his Sunderland first-team squad after a pre-season offering mixed results.
Sunderland finished on a relative high though, drawing 2-2 against Marseille at Valley Parade.
Sunderland team and injury news vs Cardiff City
Sunderland have several players sidelined for the game vs Cardiff City.
Summer signing Ian Poveda isn’t fit to feature for Sunderland just yet, with Le Bris saying that Poveda will return in two weeks.
Elsewhere, Leo Hjelde has been ruled out with an injury, joining the likes of Dan Ballard, Pierre Ekwah, Niall Huggins, and Jenson Seelt on the sidelines.
Sunderland predicted XI to face Cardiff City
Le Bris looks set to play a 4-2-3-1 formation, and will likely line up in a very similar way to what he did in the last outing vs Marseille.
Though a few positions may still be up for grabs, perhaps most notably so up front.
Sunderland are yet to sign a new striker this summer. In his Thursday presser, Le Bris suggested that Eliezer Mayenda will start vs Cardiff City.
The Spaniard has impressed in pre-season and looked to be well ahead of the likes of Luis Hemir.
There’s a lot of healthy competition in the centre of midfield with Chris Rigg having impressed in pre-season, and now Browne in the mix too.
Here’s how Sunderland could line up vs Cardiff City on Saturday, with kick off at 12:30pm…
Patterson (GK)
Hume
Alese
O’Nien
Cirkin
Browne
Neil
Roberts
Bellingham
Clarke
Mayenda