Sunderland AFC at risk of "pure disaster" after clearer updates on Ballard and Le Fee | OneFootball

Sunderland's depth has been questioned following their recent injury hits.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

It went from bad to worse for Sunderland fans this weekend when their fears were realised, and it was confirmed that Enzo Le Fee and Dan Ballard's injuries, which saw them removed prematurely from their 1-0 defeat against Hull City, will see them sidelined for an extended period.

Both Ballard and Le Fee, who many expected would play big parts in their now-outside push for automatic promotion, will miss at least six weeks with hamstring injuries, with Ballard's layoff pushing eight weeks.

With the vastly experienced Chris Mepham waiting in the wings to replace Ballard, and Romaine Mundle returning from a lengthy period out too, their immediate replacements seem straightforward.

But, any more injuries would prove disastrous, according to Sunderland's FLW fan pundit Jack Austwicke, as their hopes for a place in the top two continue to dwindle.

Sunderland squad depth a worry

Latest injury setbacks cause promotion doubts

We asked Jack how big of a blow the injuries to Ballard and Le Fee would be to their ongoing promotion push.

"If our (automatic) promotion push wasn't already over, it definitely is now with the news that Le Fee and Ballard are (out for 6-8 weeks)," he said.

"Ballard is more replaceable as we've got Mepham, who can come straight back in, but then if one of (Mepham or O'Nien) get injured then it's a pure disaster.

"As for Le Fee, he's just started to come good and with Mundle back we could've had Le Fee in the middle and Mundle on the left, but that's probably not going to happen at all now.

"It's frustrating, but it is what it is. We're going to have to persevere and see how it goes."

Sunderland's replacements will fit the bill in the short-term

After suffering a third of their league defeats in the space of a week, it's understandable that many around Sunderland are feeling rather pessimistic about the rest of the league campaign, especially with the news that Le Fee and Ballard may be out until the final few games of the season.

However, Sunderland have capable replacements for both of their key players and have performed for large parts of the season without them in the side.

Le Fee has shown his class since arriving at the Stadium of Light, and any side would be disappointed to lose someone of his stature at an important part of the season, but Sunderland were only three points off Leeds United in top spot prior to the Frenchman's loan arrival from Roma.

In will come Romaine Mundle, whose return on Saturday couldn't have been more well-timed. He excited many at Sunderland before a three-month injury layoff, scoring four and assisting a further two in 15 league games.

As for Ballard, the 25-year-old has started just 12 league games in what has been a frustrating season for the centre-back.

Despite Ballard and O'Nien creating a solid pairing over the last couple of weeks, the re-introduction of Bournemouth loanee Chris Mepham will be welcome too, with many regarding him as one of the better central defenders in the division.

Sunderland may be eight points off Sheffield United in second currently, but they do have the tools to make a late run, albeit unlikely in the eyes of their fans.