Sunderland fans are facing an anxious injury wait, following a blow to playmaker Enzo Le Fee during Saturday’s 1-0 defeat against relegation-threatened Hull City in the Championship.
The January arrival failed to appear for Sunderland for the second half of their match against the Tigers at the weekend, sparking speculation that he may have sustained an injury that could prove to be a blow within a squad that is already facing a strain due to other players being unavailable.
Following Saturday’s defeat against Hull, Sunderland remain fourth but have fallen even further behind Sheffield United and Burnley in the race for automatic promotion to the Premier League.
The club are now eight points behind the automatic promotion places with 12 league games to go, but do currently sit 12 points above 7th-placed side Coventry City and should already have enough to have sealed their top six finish for the second time in three seasons.
However, those hopes could be impacted if Le Fee’s setback is as bad or worser than initially feared.
Sunderland star faces anxious wait
Le Fee was substituted at half time during Saturday’s match, with post-match comments confirming that he had an issue with his hamstring but the club were unaware of the circumstances beyond that – including the seriousness of the injury and how long he was likely to miss.
The 25-year-old created three chances for Sunderland during the opening 45 minutes but couldn’t help his side to find the back of the net, making it back to back losses for the Black Cats and as a result made it just one win in their last four games.
Following the conclusion of the match, Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris spoke to the media (quotes via the Northern Echo), where he stated…
“Enzo’s problem is probably with his hamstrings, we will have to see whether it is serious or not tomorrow. Dan Ballard has a similar issue.
“It is obviously disappointing, but I think the dynamic of the season is like that. You have players in, and players out. Romaine (Mundle) was in today, and that is good news, so we have to face up to these different challenges.
“We have a small group. That can be a positive, because everyone is really involved, but at the same time, when we have injuries, we know that we can have a bit of a lack of depth in certain positions. That is just the characteristic of the squad this year. There are positives and negatives, we just have to try to manage things properly.”
How has he fared so far?
Le Fee’s arrival at the Stadium of Light was met with plenty of wide-spread attention and pressure, with Sunderland fans noticeably ecstatic about his arrival in the Championship from Serie A giants Roma.
He made his debut during a goalless draw against Burnley in mid-January, and was forced to wait until his fourth game to register his first goal contribution. Le Fee set up Wilson Isidor’s 51st minute goal during Sunderland’s 3-2 victory.
His first goal came against relegation-threatened Luton Town and in total, he’s registered two goal contributions in his first eight matches in English football.
Despite this seeming on the lower side, he’s completed an average of 1.6 dribbles and 1.6 chances per game as well as having a passing success rate of 83.4% – suggesting there has been more positivity to his performances than initially meets the eye.
How do Sunderland address the situation moving forward?
If Le Fee’s injury is a straight forward minor-hamstring issue, he is likely to miss between four and six weeks of the season.
With the international break occurring mid-way through next month, he could return at the end of March against Millwall, meaning he’d miss four games including their trip to Coventry City – though if it isn’t that serious, he could return within the next two weeks.
Sunderland’s Dan Ballard has also suffered an injury, which means the club are essentially almost down to their bare bones going into the remaining games before the next international break.
Romaine Mundle has however made a return from an injury setback which will come as big news for Sunderland. They also have the likes of Eliezer Mayenda that could be relied upon in the coming weeks.
With Mundle being a left-winger, their isn’t likely to be a need for an entire system change and the 21-year-old should instead slot straight into Le Fee’s spot for the next few matches.
Sunderland fans, how big of a blow (in your eyes) could this be?
