Sunderland U21s barely lost in a seven-goal thriller on Sunday afternoon.

Adil Aouchiche and Abdoullah Ba scored in Sunderland U21s’ close defeat to Everton on Sunday, bolstering their chances for a return to the main squad.

The duo played 90 minutes in a seven-goal thriller at Finch Farm, with Everton winning 4-3 thanks to a late goal. Aouchiche and Ba had been left out of the past four first team squads, and were close to leaving the club during the summer transfer window.

Head coach Regis Le Bris has now stated that he is willing to accept them back into the fold provided they earn the right on the training pitch. Their goal-scoring comeback in red-and-white shirts comes days after Le Bris indicated he was happy with their response after rejoining their team mates in training, despite not being included in the squad for the 1-0 win over Middlesbrough. Both look to be leaving in January, but their appearances indicate that they may be able to force their way back.
“We have Adil, Abdoullah, Milan [Aleksic] as well is available,” Le Bris informed me. “So it’s a question of the game’s dynamics and momentum – we’ll see. Adil and Abdoullah remain with us until the next transfer window, therefore I trust them as Sunderland players with the ability to participate and perform in the game. Because they had the chance to leave, they needed to reconnect with the project, and I am pleased with their performance in the training sessions this week,” he said.

Milan Aleksic made his Sunderland debut, playing for an hour before being replaced by Harrison Jones. Tommy Watson scored again as he pushes for a spot in the first team. Graeme Murty’s squad returns to play next Monday night, away to Fulham.

Alan Browne, Ian Poveda, and Salis Abdul Samed will return to full fitness in the coming weeks, making it more difficult for Aouchiche and Ba to regain their place in the team.

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