Ogunsuyi has stepped up from the Under-21 ranks to join the Black Cats’ senior training group on a regular basis this season, and made his senior debut as a substitute in last month’s FA Cup defeat to Stoke City.
The 18-year-old, who was an unused substitute in Monday’s Tees-Wear derby win over Middlesbrough, has been attracting the interest of Liverpool in recent months, with Le Bris hoping his level of senior involvement with increase in the next three months.
“He (Ogunsuyi) trains regularly with the senior team now,” said Le Bris. “He is getting much better confidence now. After that, for a young player, it is still a question of opportunity.
“Before he goes in, we don’t know. Then, when he goes on the pitch, maybe we say, ‘He is ready’. That is what happened with Tommy (Watson) before.
“When we watched the Under-21 games with Trey, we could say, ‘Yes, he has qualities here, but maybe he lacks in this area here’. Finally, when the opportunity arrives, you just hope they are ready, and I think that will be the case with Trey. It is just a question of getting that opportunity now.”
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Sunderland could have sent Ogunsuyi out on loan last month, but with the teenager still finding his feet in the senior environment at the Academy of Light, Le Bris preferred to keep him on Wearside.
“We decided to keep him here,” he explained. “At the stage of his career he is at, he is still getting a lot of benefits from training with us. If you are training with the first team for six months or a year, and you do not get the chance to play, maybe a year-and-a-half, then perhaps it is the right time to leave on loan. But, for him, that is not the case.”
Abdullahi joined Sunderland from Gent in the summer, but spent the early months of his Black Cats career recovering from a groin injury.
He suffered a minor setback after returning to training towards the end of last year, but is now ready to begin building up his match minutes with the Under-21s.
“He (Abdullahi) struggled a little bit with his return to play,” said Le Bris. “He was ready, but then after that he had some small issues. It wasn’t a repeat of his main injury, but it was something around the injury.
“Now, he is ready to play, so we will see what happens. I hope he will be ready to play some games progressively – 45 minutes, 60, then a full game with the Under-21s to build himself into his best shape.”
Le Bris’ more immediate priority is this lunchtime’s home game with a Watford side that have won just one of their last eight league matches.
Alan Browne is set to return to the squad, but with no new injury issues to contend with, the Black Cats boss could well opt to name the same side that started at the Riverside on Monday night.
