Regis Le Bris confirms Sunderland star will miss Chelsea game, but another key man has ‘recovered’

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Sunderland’s preparations for this weekend’s game against Chelsea have taken a hit after it was confirmed one of their most impressive players this season will miss the match.

After their shock promotion to the Premier League last season, Sunderland have gone from strength to strength and are now taking the top flight by storm.

Four wins from eight games has seen Regis Le Bris’ side rise to seventh in the table ahead of this weekend’s games. As things stand, Sunderland look set to avoid relegation quite comfortably despite the odds being stacked against them.

Obviously, the influx of new players has helped the Black Cats adjust to the Premier League, but one of those new signings will not be available to face Chelsea on Saturday.

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Injury update from Regis Le Bris has good news and bad

Speaking to the press prior to this weekend’s game, Le Bris offered an update on the injury front, and sadly, it seems Omar Alderete will have to miss the trip to Stamford Bridge after suffering a blow to the head.

Le Bris said: “The only one [injury concern] is Omar. He is under concussion protocols. He is having daily assessments and we’ll keep monitoring him. We will see if he can make Everton.”

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
4	BournemouthBournemouth	8	4	3	1	14	11	3	15
5	ChelseaChelsea	8	4	2	2	16	9	7	14
6	TottenhamTottenham	8	4	2	2	14	7	7	14
7	SunderlandSunderland	8	4	2	2	9	6	3	14
8	Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace	8	3	4	1	12	8	4	13
9	Manchester UnitedManchester United	8	4	1	3	11	12	-1	13
10	BrightonBrighton	8	3	3	2	12	11	1	12

Sunderland play Everton a week on Monday, and there’s a chance Alderete could still be ruled out, depending on how the next few days go for the Paraguayan star.

While that’s obviously a big setback for Sunderland, Le Bris did confirm that defensive midfielder Noah Sadiki is ready and raring to go for Saturday despite taking a knock last weekend.

Le Bris added: “He has recovered really quickly. I was a bit worried after the game against Wolves but he has trained fully this week. He is young, flexible, and ready to play.”

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Who will replace Omar Alderete?

Sunderland may be unbeaten in London since 2018, but Chelsea will pose a huge threat to that record this weekend. Even more so, given the absence of Alderete.

The 28-year-old, signed from Getafe this summer, has been ever-present for the Black Cats in the league this season. Replacing him will certainly take some doing.

He’s already got one goal and one assist this term, as well as an impressive 84.3% pass success rate with 311 passes completed so far.

Defensively, Alderete has an 80% tackle success rate, is making an average of 2.97 tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes, and has registered a huge 5.95 clearances per 90, too.

For Le Bris, it may well be veteran Luke O’Nien who steps in to partner Dan Ballard at the back; just like old times. Reinildo is another option, though the Mozambique ace is usually better suited to playing at left-back.