Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce has confirmed that Lamine Kone is likely to make his debut for the club in Tuesday’s Premier League clash with Manchester City at the Stadium of Light.

The Ivory Coast international joined the Black Cats from French side Lorient last week and has spent the last five days training with his new team-mates ahead of the clash with the Citizens.

The 28-year-old is match-fit after making 18 appearances in Ligue 1 during the first-half of the season and Allardyce is hopeful the centre back will be able to deal with the hustle and bustle of the Premier League.

He said: “Lamine can go straight in hopefully. He’s match-fit enough at French level. Can he transmit that ability straight into the Premier League? This is the greatest challenge he’s ever faced, but hopefully that will be achieved.”

Kone was one of five new arrivals at the Stadium of Light during January, with Jan Kirchhoff, Steve Harper and Wahbi Khazri also signing permanent deals, while Dame N’Doye joined on loan for the rest of the season.

Sunderland are currently 19th in the Premier League standings, four points adrift of safety, and as well as taking on City on Tuesday, they also face tough league matches against Liverpool and Manchester United over the next couple of weeks.

The Black Cats have lost their last four meetings with the Citizens and have conceded 15 goals in the process, and they are once again outsiders to win on Tuesday at 7.00, whilst Manuel Pellegrini’s side are on offer at 1.44 and the draw is available at 4.50.