Sunderland will listen to offers in January but won't jeopardise the team - Tony Mowbray

Some players could be set to leave Sunderland on loan, but only if there is sufficient depth in the squad.

Tony Mowbray says Sunderland are open to allowing players to leave on loan in January, but only if there is sufficient cover within the squad.

Injuries have meant most Sunderland players have seen some action this season, although Jay Matete, Trai Hume, Niall Huggins and Leon Dajaku have found themselves very much on the fringes of the first team.

Mowbray acknowledges that will be causing frustration and some players may be hoping for a loan move next month, but he says the club’s needs come first.

"It's not a case of me needing to get them out, it's about their frustration levels," Mowbray told the press ahead of the Boxing Day clash with Blackburn.

"I was a footballer and I used to get frustrated if I wasn't playing, if I wasn't picked. Footballers want to play - they should want to play!

"If it's right for the football club and there's an enquiry about a player, and the player is happy to do it, or if a player pushes for a loan, then I think we will listen. But we won't jeopardise the team.

"If there's only one other player in their way and they want to go on loan but if that [other] player gets injured and we wouldn't have another centre-forward, or left-back, or whatever it is, then it is highly unlikely that they will be going on loan. That's just the harsh professionalism required in football.

"We hope that they all get moments and minutes and it is down to me to rotate the bench and make sure they all feel part of what we are trying to achieve. I do understand, though, that as week after week and game after game goes by and if they are not getting on the bench, it becomes more difficult for them to understand when they are coming in every day and working really hard."

Sunderland’s injury crisis appears to have largely passed now, with the likes of Ross Stewart, Dan Ballard, Aji Alese, Edouard Michut and Lynden Gooch all back available. However, Elliot Embleton may not play again this season and Danny Batth and Alex Pritchard are both struggling with calf problems. 

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