Ballard, O’Nien & Le Fée: Latest Sunderland injury news and expected return dates ahead of Aston Villa match
The latest Sunderland injury news ahead of their match against Aston Villa, featuring updates on Dan Ballard, Enzo Le Fée and more.
Sunderland will hope to continue their impressive start to the Premier League season on Sunday when they welcome a struggling Aston Villa side to the Stadium of Light – but they face an anxious wait on the fitness of seven first-team players.
Enzo Le Fée, Dan Ballard and Luke O’Nien are among the players whose participation in this weekend’s game is in doubt, and we’ve got the latest updates on their conditions as well as the rest of Sunderland’s stricken players below, as well as their expected return dates when available.
Will Dan Ballard and Enzo Le Fée play against Aston Villa?
Talismanic defender Ballard hasn’t played since sustaining a groin injury in the early stages of Sunderland’s recent defeat to Burnley, but is among the players who are inching towards a return this weekend.
Ballard, whose titanic performance inspired Sunderland to their opening weekend win over West Ham United, “should be back for Aston Villa” according to head coach Régis Le Bris, and could replace Omar Alderete in the starting line-up this Sunday.
Winger Le Fée, meanwhile, was a surprise absentee from the squad that faced Crystral Palace last weekend, with Le Bris telling the media that his compatriot has sustained an unspecified “small injury” the day before the trip to Selhurst Park. Le Brish added that “I don’t know exactly what would be the time to rest”, suggesting that the former AS Roma man could miss out again this coming weekend.
Another player who remains a doubt for the Villa match is Luke O’Nien, who is edging closer to a return from the dislocated shoulder he suffered during the play-off final at Wembley. Le Bris has not confirmed that O’Nien will be ready for Sunday as yet, but the 30-year-old is back in training and could be in line for a place in the matchday squad.
Another player absent from the defence is Aji Alese, who hasn’t played since January due to a serious shoulder injury. Le Bris has told the media that Alese is “close to coming back” but a return date has not yet been confirmed. He could be in line to play against Villa, but the club have stressed that they will not rush the 24-year-old back.
Dennis Cirkin among players set to miss out for Sunderland
Irish left-back Cirkin is among players who are not believed to have any chance of featuring against Aston Villa. Like O’Nien, the defender has been sidelined since the famous win at Wembley having suffered with both wrist and knee injuries.
Le Bris told the press that “we have to wait a bit - he didn't heal completely after his wrist injury and he had an issue with his knee as well.” No return date has yet been set, and it’s a similar situation for Norwegian Leo Hjelde, who had surgery on an Achilles injury at the end of the 2024/25 season. No timeline has been set for Hjelde’s return but he is not expected to be back with the squad in the immediate future.
The final absentee is midfielder Romain Mundle. The 22-year-old went under the knife to deal with a persistent hamstring problem during the summer and continues to undergo rehabilitation. It is hoped that he will be available after the October international break, with the home fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 18 October a potential target.
Le Bris should otherwise have a clean bill of health and with access to plenty of depth after an extraordinary summer of spending in the transfer market, Sunderland have plenty of options as they look to extend their promising start to the season and make Aston Villa’s life even harder than it already is.