Jewison Bennette is expected to miss the remainder of Sunderland's season while Dan Ballard is set to be sidelined for up to three weeks, according to Tony Mowbray. The pair were injured while on international duty, with teenage winger Bennette suffering a dislocated shoulder while training with the Costa Rica squad while centre-back Ballard limped out of Northern Ireland's Euro 2024 qualifying defeat against Finland at the weekend with a hamstring problem.
Bennette's injury is the more serious of the two and Mowbray said this afternoon that the 18-year-old's season is effectively over and he may need an operation to pin the joint. Bennette was pictured wearing a sling as he arrived to watch Costa Rica's 1-0 CONCACAF Nations League group stage defeat against Panama in the early hours of this morning, which meant did not qualify for the finals of the tournament.
"He's dislocated his shoulder. Jewi is finished for the season, I think," said Mowbray, whose Sunderland side takes on Championship leaders Burnley at Turf Moor on Friday night. "I'm not a medic but it probably needs an operation and pinning, otherwise you think you're all right and then the first time you fall over in pre-season you dislocate it again and it's another three months.
