Régis Le Bris gives Dan Ballard and Sunderland injury update after York City win | OneFootball

Régis Le Bris says Dan Ballard will return to action on Sunderland's USA tour, with full training due next week after he missed the 5-1 win at York City.

Ballard had ankle surgery earlier this year after his 2025/26 season ended early following a red card in the 1-1 draw with Wolves. He has trained on Wearside over the past fortnight but sat out the opener at the LNER Community Stadium. According to Sunderland Echo, Le Bris added that Romaine Mundle's absence at York was purely precautionary.

Mundle suffered two major hamstring injuries last season, so Sunderland are taking a careful approach to his recovery. He trained last week and was fit, but it was deemed a little too soon to play after surgery.

Anthony Patterson was not involved while his long-term future is resolved. There is interest from a number of Championship clubs, though none have met Sunderland's valuation. He has been working at the Academy of Light to be ready for the new campaign and appears highly unlikely to travel to the USA.

Leo Hjelde will be assessed in the coming days after going off in the second half at York. Sunderland did not want to take risks and he felt a small pain and discomfort in his right knee.

Source: Sunderland Echo