This is when every currently injured Sunderland player is set to make their return as things stand

Sunderland have come through a hectic festive schedule with their promotion hopes intact and now have a welcome break from league action.

Head coach Régis Le Bris is hopeful that the injury situation will rapidly improve over the coming weeks, so here's the very latest as we have it on when every sidelined player could be back in action...

CLOSE TO A RETURN

Le Bris is hopeful that he might have three players back in contention for this weekend's FA Cup third round tie against Stoke City. Dan Ballard is close to a return after a minor muscle issue, while Chris Rigg is also closing in on a return from an ankle issue that has sidelined him for the last few games. It seems unlikely that Sunderland will take any major risks with them this weekend, but they could be in the squad and will be back in contention for the trip to Burnley the following Friday.

Similarly, Sunderland hope that there is a chance that Salis Abdul Samed might yet be part of the squad this weekend. They are proceeding cautiously with the defensive midfielder who has now been sidelined for a number of months, but he has now been back in full training for over a week and is making good progress. Again, if not involved this weekend then he should at least be on the bench for the trip to Burnley.

SHOULD BE BACK BEFORE TOO LONG

Though initially Sunderland had hoped that Alan Browne and Romaine Mundle might be back in early January, their recovery is taking a little longer though there is no broader cause for concern. Le Bris said Browne was a week or two behind that initial schedule and as such, should be back in action by the end of the month. The timeline with Mundle is broadly similar, who is edging towards a return. Sunderland are being cautious with the 21-year-old as hamstring injuries carry a high risk of recurrence.

Neither will be involved this weekend and the trip to Burnley could possibly come too soon, but both should be back in action by the fixtures at the end of the month.

That should also be the case with Ian Poveda. Having returned to the squad over the festive period the winger felt some discomfort in the hamstring that he had previously injured, leading Sunderland to decide it needed longer to heal. Last week, Le Bris said he expected Poveda back in around a fortnight. Realistically, he'll be phased back into competitive action gradually and so is only likely to start having an impact role at the end of the month.

EDGING TOWARDS A DEBUT

Le Bris confirmed last week that Ahmed Abdullahi had begun training after a long period recovering from groin surgery, but warned that the striker would need an extended period of training to get up to speed before being introduced to competitive football. Le Bris said he expected it to be around three or four weeks before he was a viable option, and so it might be that it is not until the end of this month that he is named in the squad and February before he's really pushing for minutes.

THE LONGER-TERM CONCERNS

Tommy Watson was ruled out for around two months in mid-December with an ankle and knee injury, so is unlikely to return this month and is likely to be back in contention sometime in February.

Jenson Seelt is stepping his recovery from a serious knee injury but is likely to play some minutes in the U21s before being considered a first-team return, and so is not expected to be in contention imminently. Niall Huggins remains some way off a return from a major knee injury, with Sunderland determined not to rush him back before he is ready. Handing him a one-year contract extension last year was done specifically to give him the protection he needed to make a full and proper recovery.