The games Habib Diarra could miss for Sunderland as huge injury update confirmed
Sunderland’s record signing Habib Diarra is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after picking up a major injury just a few games into his time at the club.
Sunderland clinched a long-awaited return to the Premier League through the Championship play-offs in May, and an unprecedented summer window followed as they overhauled Regis Le Bris’ squad.
Their spending focused on bolstering his options across the pitch, as Reinildo Mandava joined the Black Cats after he left Atletico Madrid, Dutch international striker Brian Brobbey moved to Wearside from Ajax, and Habib Diarra arrived at Sunderland from Strasbourg for a club-record fee of £30million [BBC].
Senegal midfielder Diarra impressed in Ligue 1, and he was a key player in each of the Black Cats’ first four league games of this season prior to missing last weekend’s clash against Aston Villa after suffering an injury in training.
The seriousness of his problem has now been officially revealed by Sunderland, and he looks set to be facing an extended spell out of action in a big blow to the club’s chances of continuing their strong start to life back in the Premier League.
Habib Diarra ruled out until December after groin surgery
Le Bris confirmed prior to Sunday’s clash against Villa that Diarra was injured, saying: “He got an injury yesterday during a training session, so we will have to wait for the diagnosis.”
Sunderland moved to confirm news of the 21-year-old’s issue with a post on X on Tuesday (23 September) that linked to an official club statement, which read: “Sunderland AFC midfielder Habib Diarra underwent successful surgery on Monday.
“After sustaining a groin injury in training ahead of the Club’s Premier League fixture versus Aston Villa, the 21-year-old will now begin a period of rehabilitation at the Academy of Light. Diarra, who moved to Wearside from RC Strasbourg in July, is scheduled to return to action in December.”
His injury could give highly-rated youngster Chris Rigg, who recently signed a new contract at Sunderland, the chance to shine more often in the top-flight after he was handed a starting berth against Villa.
As well as missing action for Sunderland, Diarra’s absence could prove to be a big blow to his own hopes of making an impact on the international stage, as he is unlikely to be match fit in time to be named in Senegal’s African Cup of Nations squad, with the tournament starting on 23 December.
The games that Habib Diarra could miss for Sunderland
His definite return date has not been confirmed, but December is clearly targeted as a month in which Diarra could re-join first-team training and play again for the Black Cats.
With that in mind, here is a full list of all the Sunderland games he could miss up to the start of AFCON:
September
- 27 September: Premier League, Nottingham Forest (a)
October
- 4 October: Premier League, Man United (a)
- 18 October: Premier League, Wolves (H)
- 25 October: Premier League, Chelsea (a)
November
- 3 November: Premier League, Everton (H)
- 8 November: Premier League, Arsenal (H)
- 22 November: Premier League, Fulham (a)
- 29 November: Premier League, Bournemouth (H)
December
- 3 December: Premier League, Liverpool (a)
- 6 December: Premier League, Man City (a)
- 13 December: Premier League, Newcastle (H)