Sunderland have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, but are still rock bottom of the Premier League table.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Black Cats boss David Moyes discussed his plans to deal with the potential exit of up to four players due to their impending participation in the African Cup of Nations in January, as quoted by the Sunderland Echo.
Sunderland are currently rooted to the bottom of the Premier League, but have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, picking up six points form their last three outings.
Sunderland manager David Moyes
Lamine Kone, Wahbi Khazri, Didier Ndong and Papy Djilobodji could all be called up for the tournament in January.
And Moyes highlighted the difficulties that his side could face, but insisted that they do have options to cover those who could potentially be missing for the entire month, as quoted by the Sunderland Echo:
“Yes, we are thinking about it all the time [AFCON]. We have been preparing and thinking about ‘if they did get knocked out when would they be back or if they got through to the final when would they be back etc.’ We are aware the Africa Cup of Nations is looming. Thankfully we are beginning to get the likes of Seb Larsson, Jan Kirchhoff and Fabio Borini back. I am hoping, by the time January comes around, we will certainly have Jack Rodwell back too.”
Sunderland manager David Moyes
The Wearside outfit face four Premier League games in January, with three home games against Liverpool, Stoke City, and Tottenham Hotspur, along with an away game at West Bromwich Albion.
That run of fixtures could potentially define their season, and Moyes will surely be putting priority on the games against Stoke and West Brom as he looks to guide his side to safety.
Sunderland manager David Moyes
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