Sunderland are hoping to improve their squad in the January transfer window

Régis Le Bris says Sunderland will not rush any decisions in the January transfer window and confirmed that no new incomings are imminent.

The Black Cats enter the winter window in a position of significant strength after a brilliant first half of the campaign, and while there is a desire to add some extra quality to the group, there is also a determination to let the new squad settle and to ensure game time for many of the younger players recruited last summer.

Sunderland will be bolstered by the return of their AFCON contingent from later this week, leaving them with no need to make panic signings. Le Bris said it was an unpredictable window and reiterated that the club will only recruit if a high calibre of player becomes available.

“There is nothing at the minute,” Le Bris said.

“The period is a really interesting one. It’s tough, and even with a number of absentees, the level of the squad remains really consistent, which is really positive. That shows the depth of the squad and the versatility of three or four of our players, which is really useful for game management. If we can improve and reinforce the squad, we will try to do that. But what we have learned will also be important for the next transfer window.

“We are in a good place, which is really positive,” Le Bris added.

“We might have been in a different position, in a rushed process where we had to reinforce the squad in this position or that one. That is not the case though. It is a good position, a comfortable one, but we still want to be ambitious. We will not have a massive window, that is really clear, but if it is possible to do something, we will. It is always unpredictable though because of lots of elements can influence the situation. There is the availability of the players, then there is also our way of assessing what we need. It evolves through this period, but we are in a good place.”

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Régis Le Bris issues Sunderland team news update

Elsewhere in hus pre-match press conference ahead of Sunderland’s trip to Brentford on Wednesday night, Le Bris confirmed that a late decision would be made on the extent of Wilson Isidor and Dan Ballard’s involvement after training on Tuesday.

“With Wilson we will see this morning, we'll have a test on the pitch and see if he's available or not,” Le Bris said.

“Dan might be OK to start, we'll see after the training session but he's in a good place now. We decided to avoid rushing the process. Even if he was on the bench, maybe he would have been able to start but we decided to stay cautious. He might be available for tomorrow, again it's one we will see after this session.”

Your next Sunderland read: Everything Le Bris said ahead of Sunderland’s clash with Brentford