Sunderland and Regis Le Bris have been handed an injury boost after a new update on a £15,000-a-week player emerged.

Sunderland Championship results and fixtures

The Black Cats made a perfect start to the Championship season, winning their opening four games of the campaign. Despite suffering away defeats to Plymouth Argyle and Watford either side of a home win over Middlesbrough, they still sit on 15 points after seven second-tier fixtures.

Looking back after the defeat at Vicarage Road on Saturday, Le Bris said: “We are disappointed because we lost that game and we want to win every game. We had this first 25 minutes when it was difficult to deal with their offensive shape with our 4-4-2 block.

“We used another shape and it was a good layer for us because this shape of 5-4-1 was interesting and we solved the problem. We went behind and then we dominated that game. In possession we were interesting with many switched plays and good chances. Then we equalised but with this kind of team, with many strong players, they have this ability in one-v-one situations and counter-attacks as well. So at the end we made two mistakes and lost that game.”

The games keep coming for Sunderland, with back-to-back home clashes against Derby County and Leeds United prior to the next international break.

Ahead of the meeting with the Rams, the Black Cats still have some players sidelined, however, one member of the squad is available or selection again in a boost for Le Bris.

Latest Sunderland injury news

The Northern Echo relayed the latest Sunderland injury news ahead of the meeting with Derby, with Le Bris confirming that Dan Ballard and Eliezer Mayenda remain out with their respective injuries. However, Alan Browne, who had missed the last two with a knee problem he suffered against Plymouth, will be back available for selection.

“Alan Browne will be available, but Eliezer and Dan aren’t. We think that they will probably be back after the international break.”

Browne, on £15,000-a-week, made the move to the Stadium of Light over the summer after leaving Preston North End and has made four appearances in red and white so far. In fact, the Republic of Ireland international already has his first goal for the Club, scoring in the 3-1 win at Portsmouth and has come in for praise from teammate Dan Neil, who labelled Browne as “unbelievable” back in August.

“Alan’s got an unbelievable engine, unbelievable legs. We knew that from when we played Preston previously. Every time we’ve come up against him, we’ve talked about the unbelievable engine he has.

“He’s a bit more of an experienced head in there as well, which helps us because me and Jobe are still young. We’ve got experience for our age, but Browney has been around for a long time.

“He’s a good leader on the pitch, and he’s got quality in possession as well. He did a few driving runs, and I thought him, Trai and Pat linked up really well on that right-hand side. I’m sure you’ll see more of that as the season goes on.”