Sunderland have fielded interest in a loan move for Jocelin Ta Bi and could sanction his departure before the end of the window

Régis Le Bris says Jocelin Ta Bi could potentially leave Sunderland on loan before the end of the transfer window.

Ta Bi has interest from Ligue 1 and clubs in the UK after an impressive Toulon tournament with the Ivory Coast this summer. Sunderland are open to keeping Ta Bi with the main squad for the season, as they believe he will benefit from training with top players every day and from occasional opportunities to feature from the bench.

However, if the club recruit further in the wider positions as they hope to then his game time will be limited further and the Black Cats could revisit their stance. The deadline closes at 11pm on Tuesday night.

Le Bris says that if Ta Bi does depart, it will only be to a club where he has a good chance of regular minutes.

“It's still possible,” Le Bris said.

“We like his profile, he's like Jules [Ahoka], big profile and potential for the position with exactly the characteristics you need for this position, but he needs time to get better.... It's possible through the training sessions because every day it's really intense with good players so you can learn. But it's also possible with a loan so we'll decide at the end of the season.

“Game-time is crucial [if he goes].”

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Le Bris also hinted that Alan Browne is likely to depart before the deadline on Tuesday. The experienced midfielder has interest from a number of clubs, including Championship duo Blackburn Rovers and Preston North End.

“We'll have the same conversation like we had last season,” Le Bris said.

“He's a really good professional, he's a strong teammate even if he didn't have game-time at the beginning of the season. But for every player we need to find the right journey.”

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