A much-needed boost has been given to Sunderland ahead of their Championship matchup with Swansea City on Saturday.
Dan Ballard, a defender for Sunderland, is available to play against Swansea City on Saturday at Liberty Stadium in the Championship.
The former Arsenal player would have received his fifth booking of the season during last weekend’s victory over Norwich City at the Stadium of Light, according to some reports.
The Echo has since been informed, though, that Pierre Ekwah, a teammate, was indeed booked in the first half of the match after Norwich City’s first goal.
Ballard, though, is still only one yellow card away from a one-match suspension; three other Black Cats players, as previously reported, are approaching the disciplinary threshold, as reported last week.
During this month’s 4-0 loss to Middlesbrough, Ballard received his fourth yellow card of the year; however, he did not receive another booking in the following games against Stoke, Leicester, or Norwich.
However, according to EFL regulations, a player will be suspended for one game if they receive five yellow cards up until the 19th game of the season, which will take place on Saturday, December 2 when Sunderland visits Millwall.
The Black Cats will play Swansea, Birmingham, Plymouth, and Huddersfield prior to that match. Up until the 37th league game of the season, players who receive 10 yellow cards will be suspended for two games.
Along with Abdoullah Ba, Dennis Cirkin was also booked during Tuesday’s game at Leicester, making three yellow cards for the season.
Luke O’Nien, the captain of Sunderland, received his fourth booking of the year against Norwich City, putting both of the team’s starting defenders one caution away from missing a game.
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