Yahoo Sport 
Regis Le Bris earmarks Sunderland player for likely January loan move
REGIS LE BRIS has admitted that Zak Johnson could leave Sunderland on loan in January in order to increase his chances of playing regular first-team football in the second half of the season.
Johnson made his senior Sunderland debut as a substitute in a Papa John’s Trophy win over Manchester United Under-21s back in October 2021, but the 20-year-old’s only senior involvement last season came in the Carabao Cup defeat to Crewe Alexandra.
This term, the centre-half has been an unused substitute on 13 separate occasions, but again, his only senior minutes have come in the League Cup, with him playing the full 90 minutes of August’s second-round defeat at Preston.
Johnson spent the second half of last season on loan at League of Ireland side Dundalk, making 18 senior appearances.
He has also previously spent time on loan at Hartlepool United, and with Jenson Seelt on the verge of returning to fitness to bolster a central-defensive unit that already features Dan Ballard, Chris Mepham, Luke O’Nien, Leo Hjelde and Aji Alese, Le Bris has hinted that Johnson could be set for another temporary stint away from the Stadium of Light.
READ MORE:
Sunderland defender emerges as key doubt ahead of Bristol City game
Tommy Watson on his Sunderland dream, family celebrations and Jack Clarke comparisons
“We’ll see,” said Le Bris. “It (a January loan move) could be an option. His reaction, the way he trains every day, is very positive. I like Zak in the training sessions, and especially when he’s a team-mate on the bench. He's always positive, he’s a good player, but he needs time to develop.”
While Tommy Watson has become the latest academy product to flourish in Sunderland’s first team, Le Bris accepts that is much harder for a young defender to establish himself in the senior ranks.
“I think for him (Johnson) it's more difficult because the back four is more consistent,” he said. “Probably, if he had been a winger, it should have been different for him. But it’s the case, and so far, he's very positive with the team and I like his profile.”
