Sunderland monitoring fresh injury concern ahead of clash with Middlesbrough

Alan Browne has emerged as an injury doubt for Sunderland ahead of this weekend's visit of Middlesbrough.

Browne has experienced some discomfort in his knee this week and is awaiting the results of tests to ascertain the extent of the problem. Browne appeared alongside Sunderland's summer signings at a Q&A session at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday night with his knee in a brace, though fans were told that was precautionary at this stage. It remains to be seen whether the Irish international will be able to feature on Saturday lunchtime or whether he is facing a spell on the sidelines.

Fellow summer signing Samis Abdul Samed confirmed at the event that he will not be able to make his debut against Middlesbrough this weekend, as head coach Regis Le Bris strongly suggested would be the case at a press conference last week. Le Bris said last Thursday that Samed was 7-10 days away from joining full training, and Samed said on Tuesday night that he was hopeful of being available for selection in around a fortnight.

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Ian Poveda was also present at the Q&A having missed the 3-2 win over Plymouth Argyle with a minor thigh issue, though Le Bris made clear that it was a minor problem and that he did not expect him to absent for long. Sunderland continue to monitor Dan Ballard after he suffered an injury in the latter stages of the Plymouth defeat, with Le Bris set to issue an update at his pre-match press conference on Thursday.