Sunderland dive headfirst into a tricky set of fixtures in the Premier League later today as a trip to Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea awaits Regis Le Bris’ determined underdogs.
The Black Cats’ last detour to London saw them pick up a plucky 0-0 draw away at Crystal Palace, with the Frenchman looking for more of the same against the Blues, who are just fresh off a 5-1 demolition job of Ajax in the Champions League.
After this difficult tie, the Wearside giants then face off against Everton and Arsenal at home to kickstart November.
Le Bris will be largely satisfied with what he saw from his troops last time out in a comfortable 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Still, he could be forced into making some slight alterations anyway, with this first-team presence already being ruled out through injury…
Sunderland team news for Chelsea
Away from Habib Diarra being in the Stadium of Light treatment room for the foreseeable future, Omar Alderete looks as if he will also be missing from the game in West London, due to concussion protocol.
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Luke O’Nien could well get the nod to start over the Paraguayan, therefore.
Reports also suggest that Noah Sadiki might well be touch-and-go for a starting spot against Maresca’s hosts, having battled back well from an injury sustained on international duty to play against Vitor Pereira’s basement side, only to look sheepish come full-time.
Renilido is also back and available for selection after serving a suspension, with Le Bris perhaps in need of some more options in the left-back spot, as Dennis Cirkin remains sidelined next to the injury-stricken Diarra.
It’s not all just injuries that will impact Le Bris’ decision-making heading into the tense clash at Stamford Bridge, though, with Bertrand Traore seriously in danger of being axed from the starting XI, after putting in a poor showing during the 2-0 win.
Having amassed a forgettable 23 touches against a porous Old Gold defence, it does appear unlikely that the Burkina Faso international will be trusted to start down the right channel again, particularly against a far sterner Chelsea test.
It could well result in Le Bris chucking this promising Black Cats star into the starting lineup over Traore, who is seemingly becoming more and more used to the pressures of the Premier League with every passing game.
How Sunderland can replace Traore vs Chelsea
Thankfully, while Traore has struggled to get going in his new Sunderland shirt, other, more settled faces up top have made the jump up to the Premier League not look as daunting.
Indeed, Enzo Le Fee – who was key to the Black Cats’ promotion up to the top-flight – already has one goal to shout about from his five league starts so far, while Wilson Isidor has continued to lead the line with venom, after collecting 13 Championship goals last season, with three put away in the division above.
Annoyingly for Traore, though, his competition down the right wing is a new addition who hasn’t looked fazed by the bright lights of the Premier League whatsoever, in promising 20-year-old attacker Chemsdine Talbi.
Hailed as “electric” by scout Antonio Mango when collecting 12 goal contributions on the books of Club Brugge, many would have been expecting the Morocco international to take some time to get adjusted to the English game.
Instead, however, the £18m signing has blown Traore out of the water, with a standout cameo against Wolves perhaps enough to push him into the starting lineup later today.
From just 27 minutes of action against Wolves, Talbi would strike fear into the opposition defenders far more than Traore managed, with one gung-ho dart forward right at the death resulting in a late own-goal sealing the 2-0 victory.
With an assist also collected on the opening day against West Ham United, it’s clear that the 20-year-old is capable of offering far more sudden magic than the disappointing number 25, with Sunderland journalist Phil Smith also stating recently that Talbi has “really grown into the Sunderland shirt” with his “dangerous” front-foot approach.
This might well be a change that catches Chelsea out, with Talbi’s “fast-forward” mentality – as he was once also dubbed in Belgium – a useful weapon for Le Bris to deploy heading into a tough patch of fixtures to come.
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ByTom Cunningham
