Sunderland boss puts potential timeline on Jay Matete injury

Sunderland's Jay Matete picked up a knee injury in pre-season.

Author:
Luke Phelps
Publish date:
Aug 14, 2023 8:04 AM EDT

Tony Mowbray says Sunderland midfielder Jay Matete could be out until Christmas.

Matete, 22, looked set to play a role in Mowbray's Sunderland first-team this season, following a decent spell on loan with Plymouth Argyle in the second half of last season.

The midfielder featured 19 times in League One as he helped the Green Army get across the promotion line, before returning to the Stadium of Light for pre-season.

But a knee injury picked up in pre-season has kept him sidelined since, and now Mowbray has revealed that the Englishman could be out for up to three months.

Speaking Sunderland Echo about Matete's injury, Mowbray said:

"I think it's going to be months rather than weeks, for Matete. Maybe three months - November?

"At the moment I don't have the exact time scale but it was quite a bad one.

"Hopefully he will be back before Christmas. I'm sure he will be back before Christmas and competing."

Another problem position...

For Sunderland, the big miss at the moment is strikers.

But Matete joins names like Corry Evans and Elliot Embleton on the sidelines and now, almost all of a sudden, Mowbray is really lacking in options in the middle of the pitch.

Evans and Embleton remains longer-term absentees for the Black Cats and with Matete now out as well, it really only leaves Pierre Ekwah, Dan Neil, and maybe Abdoullah Ba as options to play in front of the defence.

Expect the Black Cats to try and address this issue in the remainder of the summer transfer window, after yet another defeat for Sunderland in the Championship on Saturday.

Up next for Mowbray's men is a home game v Rotherham United this weekend.

Another problem position...

Read more Sunderland news