Sunderland couldn't have been handed a more difficult opening day task.

The Black Cats welcome Wigan Athletic to the Stadium Of Light on Saturday afternoon as both sides look to get their respective promotion pushes off to the best possible start.

The Latics have a number of familiar faces in their side, of course, with Max Power and Charlie Wyke set to make their debuts for the club; while former loan star Jordan Jones could also be set to make a move to the DW Stadium.

For Lee Johnson the focus is on fielding a team that is capable of getting a result.

The club have done some decent work in the transfer market but there are still some glaring gaps in the squad. Here are two dilemmas that Johnson is facing.

 

 

Who plays left-back?

This could be a real head-scratcher for Lee Johnson.

With Callum McFadzean leaving the club over the the summer and Denver Hume yet to sign a new contract it means that Sunderland are without a left-sided defender.

Perhaps Luke O'Nien could slot into that role or maybe Johnson will switch to wing-backs, but whatever happens it's going to be very interesting to see what he does to solve this glaring gap in his squad.

The Will Grigg dilemma

With Charlie Wyke moving on (and ironically lining up for Saturday's opponents, Wigan) it means that it's time for another goalscoring hero to step up.

Ross Stewart is likely to get the nod in attack but with limited experience at this level it'll be interesting to see whether he has the full faith of Lee Johnson or not.

Of course Will Grigg is still in the mix and after featuring in pre-season there's every chance that he could be afforded a new opportunity to make a name for himself at the Stadium Of Light.