ANTHONY PATTERSON looks set to miss Sunderland’s weekend game at QPR as he continues to struggle with a muscular issue.

Patterson was forced to sit out last weekend’s 2-0 victory over Oxford United, with Simon Moore stepping in to make his first league start since joining the Black Cats in the summer.

While Regis Le Bris does not regard Patterson’s injury as serious, the Sunderland boss has confirmed his number one shot-stopper has not been able to train this week as he continues to experience pain in his leg.

As a result, Patterson is not expected to feature in Sunderland’s game at Loftus Road, although Le Bris is hoping the 24-year-old might be available for the matches against Preston and Coventry City that precede the international break.

“With Anthony, we have to wait,” admitted the Black Cats boss. “It's not too serious, but it depends on his pain. At the minute, he can't train, so it could be five days or one week maximum (until he is available again), I think.

“The international break might be good for him, but he could be back earlier, we don't know. It is an unusual injury, so it depends on how he feels. At the minute, he's not ready, but maybe next week, it will be possible.”

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While Patterson has not trained this week, Eliezer Mayenda has returned to full training and is set to be back in the squad against QPR. Le Bris is hoping Dan Ballard will step up his own recovery programme tomorrow, but the centre-half is not expected to feature in the squad at Loftus Road.

“Eliezer is okay, ready to play,” said Le Bris. “For Ballard, he will train on Friday and he is very close to joining the group now.”

Prior to suffering an injury, Mayenda had emerged as Sunderland’s number one forward. Since he has been sidelined, the Frenchman has watched Wilson Isidor score four goals in the space of six matches, with the Zenit St Petersburg loanee now firmly established as Le Bris’ first-choice striker.

Aaron Connolly has also arrived to add further competition – the Irishman has made three substitute appearances in the first team and scored three goals in two games with the Under-21s – with Mayenda now facing a major battle to reclaim his spot.

“It is a new story for him (Mayenda),” said Le Bris. “We spoke about it yesterday. He did very well in the first part of the season and was very important for us. Then, after, Wilson came through, and now there is Aaron there as well.

“We trust Eliezer, and we think he is a very good player. It is a good problem for me, and a good problem for the team, to have that level of competition. You can feel that if you are not involved 100 per cent every day, you have someone behind you to play. That is good for the team, and good for them as well. From a high-level perspective, you always need competition.”