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Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey has withdrawn from the Netherlands squad for their upcoming Nations League squad after he sustained a small tear in his upper leg.

Journalist Mounir Boualin reports that the Sunderland striker has suffered the ‘small tear’ in his upper leg. He is now set to be sidelined for a few weeks with the problem.

Whether he will be fit for Sunderland after the international break remains to be seen. At the moment it doesn’t likely.

The hamstring has already been a problem for Brobbey and the Black Cats this season. He picked up the injury at the end of September that saw him spend a month on the sidelines, 29 days in total. That saw him miss three games in total.

What’s the fitness issue?

The injury had already been an issue ahead of the international break. It was a major question of whether Brobbey would link up with the Netherlands squad in the first place.

If it had been up to Regis Le Bris, he would not have. He openly stated that conversations would be had with the Netherlands set up about the striker taking part in this international break.

It will be interesting to see what those conversations will be now that Brobbey is facing a couple of weeks on the sidelines at the busiest time of the season.

BRIAN BROBBEY
Injury history · Main recorded absences since 2020
Sport Witness
LATEST UPDATE — 10 NOVEMBER 2026
Withdrawn from Netherlands duty following his recent hamstring absence. Sunderland confirmed he had returned to playing but had completed 90 minutes only once since his comeback. No new injury diagnosis or return date was announced.
Period Reported injury Approximate absence
September–October 2026 Hamstring injury Several weeks; playing return managed cautiously
August 2026 Knock 1–2 days
February–March 2026 Groin injury Around 3 weeks
August 2025 Ankle injury Around 3 weeks
April 2025 Unspecified injury Around 1 week
March 2025 Knee problem Several days
November–December 2024 Head injury / knock Around 1 week
September 2024 Unspecified injury 4 days
June 2024 Hamstring injury Around 9 days
March–April 2024 Hamstring injury Around 3 weeks
September 2023 Unspecified injury Around 12 days
January 2023 Shoulder injury 5 days
January–March 2022 Knee medial ligament tear Around 6–7 weeks
October–November 2021 Muscle / thigh injury Around 4 weeks
April 2021 Thigh problem Around 1 week
March 2021 Unspecified injury Around 9 days
December 2020–January 2021 Unspecified injury Around 5 weeks
Notes: Main publicly recorded injuries, rather than a complete medical history. Dates and absence lengths vary between sources. Illness and fitness-only absences are excluded. November 2023 is omitted because sources disagree on whether the absence involved illness or a muscular problem. Recovery dates do not necessarily indicate a return to competitive matches.
Updated: 10 November 2026.
SPORT WITNESS

Why Sunderland won’t be impressed

It’s fair to imagine that Sunderland won’t be happy about the situation.

The striker is very much a key player for Sunderland. That was demonstrated before the international break with his assist in the 1-0 win over Chelsea.

Now they face a spell without him once again. He’s seemingly picked up a small tear in his upper leg.

How they deal with that will be interesting. It will be particularly interesting in the middle of a relegation battle.

Losing their number one striker – who has three goals and one assist in nine games to date – is something they will have been key to avoid.

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